FTX fraudster Caroline Ellison sentenced to 2 years in prison, ordered to forfeit $11 billion

FTX fraudster Caroline Ellison sentenced to 2 years in prison, ordered to forfeit  billion


Caroline Ellison sentenced to two years in prison for role in FTX collapse

Caroline Ellison, the star witness in the prosecution of her former boyfriend, FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, was sentenced Tuesday in New York federal court to two years in prison and ordered to forfeit $11 billion for her role in the massive fraud and conspiracy that doomed the cryptocurrency exchange once valued at $32 billion.

The prison term was significantly stiffer than the recommendation by the federal Probation Department that Judge Lewis Kaplan sentence Ellison to three years of supervised release, with no time at all behind bars.

Defense lawyers also had requested a no-prison sentence for Ellison, who had run Alameda Research, a hedge fund connected to FTX.

Caroline Ellison, former CEO of Alameda Research LLC, right, arrives at court in New York on Sept. 24, 2024.

Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images

While Kaplan praised Ellison for her extensive cooperation with prosecutors — which led to the conviction of Bankman-Fried — the judge said her criminal sentence needed to deter other potential bad actors from committing fraud.

A “literal get-out-of-jail-free card I can’t agree to,” Kaplan said in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, where Ellison’s parents and two sisters looked on from the courtroom’s gallery.

“I’ve seen a lot of cooperators over the years and I’ve never seen one quite like Miss Ellison,” said Kaplan, who also said he believed that Ellison was genuinely remorseful for her crimes, and that her cooperation carried a steep price for her emotionally.

Ellison wept as her sentence was handed down. She was ordered to surrender to prison either on Nov.

Ellison reached a plea deal with prosecutors in December 2022, a month after FTX spiraled into bankruptcy. She pleaded guilty to conspiracy and financial fraud charges.

Bankman-Fried, in contrast, chose to stand trial and was convicted of all seven criminal fraud charges against him in the same courthouse where she was sentenced.

He was sentenced to 25 years in prison in March and also was ordered to pay $11 billion in forfeiture.

Bankman-Fried since then has appealed his conviction, and requested a new trial and a different judge, arguing that Kaplan was biased against him.

Late Monday, Ellison’s attorneys in a court filing said they had finalized financial settlements with prosecutors and the FTX debtor’s estate.

The filing did not say how much she would pay in those settlements, which are separate from the forfeiture order, but it was already known that Ellison’s $10 million in shares in the AI startup Anthropic, which have grown substantially since she first bought them, provide the bulk value of her settlements.

Both Bankman-Fried and Ellison had faced the same statutory maximum sentence of about 110 years in prison for their crimes.

But defendants in criminal cases who cooperate with prosecutors instead of fighting the charges particularly in white-collar cases such as FTX, often receive leniency when they are sentenced.

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried appeals fraud conviction

This is breaking news. Check back for updates.



Source

Asia-Pacific markets poised for cautious open as investors assess gains on Wall Street and Trump’s tariff plans
World

Asia-Pacific markets poised for cautious open as investors assess gains on Wall Street and Trump’s tariff plans

Shanghai Bund skyline panorama Yangna | E+ | Getty Images Asia-Pacific markets are set to have a cautious open Tuesday, with investors assessing the record gains on Wall Street and the global impact of U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff policies as his 90-day tariff reprieve is set to expire next week. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said […]

Read More
Stock futures tick lower after S&P 500 notches new record to cap winning second quarter: Live updates
World

Stock futures tick lower after S&P 500 notches new record to cap winning second quarter: Live updates

Traders work at the New York Stock Exchange on June 25, 2025. NYSE U.S. equity futures were slightly lower on Monday night after the S&P 500 notched another record to close out a stunning month and quarter. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 53 points, or 0.1%. S&P 500 futures dropped 0.1%, […]

Read More
Meta shares hit all-time high as Mark Zuckerberg goes on AI hiring blitz
World

Meta shares hit all-time high as Mark Zuckerberg goes on AI hiring blitz

Mark Zuckerberg, chief executive officer of Meta Platforms Inc., during the Meta Connect event on Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images Meta shares hit a record high on Monday, underscoring investor interest in the company’s new AI superintelligence group. The company’s shares reached $747.90 during midday trading, topping Meta’s previous stock […]

Read More