Breaking: Ex-FTX Exec Ryan Salame Fined $1.5B

Amid much anticipation in the crypto industry Ryan Salame’s hearing was held at the federal court in Manhattan after the FBI raided the residence of the ex-FTX Bahama CEO. All the speculations leading up to the case proved true when Salame agreed to enter a plea agreement with the court.

Also Read: Breaking: Former FTX Executive Ryan Salame to Plead Guilty

The Charges

Judge Lewis Kaplan, who presided over the case, is also set to oversee the case of FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried. The Judge read the list of charges that included conspiracy to defraud the Federal Elections Committee, Campaign Contributions, and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business.

Salame also agreed to forfeit to the US while paying $6 million when he is sentenced and surrendering two properties in Lenox, Mass, and a Porsche car. The total value of Salame’s surrendered assets amounts to a whopping $1.5 billion.

Salame also agreed to make restitution payments that amount to $5 million to the FTX debtors. As Salame signed a plea agreement, he waved away rights to appeal any sentence under the stipulated guideline of 120 months.

Also Read: Just-In: Fintech Owner Uses Bitcoin Scheme To Launder Drug Money Via Binance

Salame’s Revelations

Salame agreed to previously making over $10 million in political contributions, disguising them as loans that he did not intend to pay. He also mentioned that Sam Bankman-Fried supported the contributions. Towards the end of the statement, Salame added he knew what he did was prohibited.

The statement by Ryan Salame could prove to be groundbreaking in the Sam Bankman-Fried case. Salame had at the end pleaded guilty to all the charges recited by Judge Kaplan in the Court. The Judge released Ryan Salame on bail on the terms of a $1 million bond and two co-signers.

Also Read: Breaking: FTX Founder Bankman-Fried Appeals Pretrial Detention Ruling