Officials revealed Wednesday night that the ex-girlfriend of disgraced cryptocurrency tycoon Sam Bankman-Fried and a co-founder of FTX had both admitted guilt to fraud charges in connection with the demise of the cryptocurrency exchange and were working with federal authorities.
Before Bankman-Fried arrived in New York to face his own charges, Caroline Ellison, the former CEO of Bankman-Fried’s hedge fund company Alameda Research, and Gary Wang, a co-founder of FTX, entered guilty pleas to the charges, according to a statement from Manhattan US Attorney Damian Williams.
According to Williams, the accusations made against the two were related to their participation in the scams that led to the demise of FTX.
“Both Ms. Ellison and Mr. Wang have pled guilty to those charges and they are both cooperating with the Southern District of New York.”
Following Bankman-Fried’s transfer to FBI custody by Bahamian officials, news of the charges broke. According to the US attorney, he was flown back to New York on Wednesday night and would show up in front of a federal judge as soon as feasible.
Authorities claim that Bankman-Fried, the former CEO of FTX, misled investors out of more than $1.8 billion by concealing the currency exchange’s financial issues.
Bankman-Fried was charged by the Securities and Exchange Commission with utilizing investor funds for Alameda and real estate purchases on behalf of himself and his family illegally. Additionally, he is accused of wire fraud, money laundering, and campaign fundraising.
One of the largest financial frauds in American history, according to Williams, was the FTX collapse. The corporation formerly had a $32 billion estimated value.
He urged the former employees of Bankman-Fried’s crypto empire to come forward before federal authorities come after them, saying that his office’s investigation is underway but advancing swiftly.
According to the agreement, Ellison admitted guilt to seven counts of misleading investors and clients of FTX and Alameda. The maximum sentence for these offenses is 110 years.
She was released on a $250,000 bail as part of the plea agreement and is not permitted to leave the country. She is also required to pay restitution in an amount that will be decided by the court, according to court documents.
