Former FTX executive and Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) associate Ryan Salame has been sentenced to 7.5 years in prison and a combined total of $11 million in forfeiture and restitution for criminal charges stemming from his time at SBF’s crypto exchange following a Tuesday morning hearing.
Salame had originally requested a sentence of 18 months in prison while U.S. prosecutors pushed for the former head of FTX’s Bahamian subsidiary, FTX Digital Markets, to get five to seven years.
Salame pleaded guilty to operating an illegal money-transmitting business and making unlawful political contributions in October 2023. He has repeatedly denied knowledge of FTX stealing customer funds.
“Ryan Salame agreed to advance the interests of FTX, Alameda Research, and his co-conspirators through an unlawful political influence campaign and through an unlicensed money transmitting business, which helped FTX grow faster and larger by operating outside of the law,” said U.S. Attorney Damian Williams. “Salame’s involvement in two serious federal crimes undermined public trust in American elections and the integrity of the financial system. Today’s sentence underscores the substantial consequences for such offenses.”
Salame’s sentence was imposed by Judge Lewis A. Kaplan, who recently ordered SBF himself to pay an $11 billion penalty and serve 25 years in prison.
“As was true for thousands of other FTX employees, customers, investors, and lenders, Ryan lost years of hard work and nearly his entire net worth almost instantaneously,” Salame’s lawyers stated in a recent court filing. “Ryan, who was not part of Sam Bankman-Fried’s innermost circle, was unaware of the crimes at the center of this case.”
He is the first FTX executive outside of Bankman-Fried to be sentenced.
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