Funviralpark Caroline Ellison, former chief executive of FTX sister company Alameda Research, has been charged with seven counts, including wire fraud, securities fraud and money laundering, according to a new unsealed agreement with prosecutors. I agreed to plead guilty to the crime.
The maximum sentence for these crimes combined is 110 years, but Ellison’s cooperation in the investigation will likely reduce her sentence significantly.
Alongside the newly unsealed plea deal, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has filed an amended complaint detailing the lawsuit against Ellison and Alameda/FTX co-founder Gary Wang, advocating for their actions. , FTX Group.
CFTC’s Amended Complaint Indicts Ellison for Fraud and Material Misrepresentation Related to Sale of Digital Asset Products in Interstate Commerce, and Wang for Fraud Related to Sale of Digital Asset Products in Interstate Commerce .
The commission claims Wang wrote a feature specifically into the code underlying FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange, that allowed Alameda to maintain an “essentially unlimited line of credit” on the platform. He also told Alameda that Ellison would use “billions of dollars of FTX funds, including FTX customer funds, to trade on other digital asset exchanges and fund investments in a variety of high-risk digital asset industries.” It claims to have instructed it to provide She publicly claimed that her two companies were separate entities, even though she was gambling Alameda’s customers’ money, which she received through an unlimited line of credit and other loans between FTX and Alameda. Did.
CFTC Chair Rostin Behnam said: In the absence of a comprehensive regulatory framework for digital assets, the CFTC will use all existing powers and powers to protect all market participants and ensure the integrity of commodity markets. ”
Ellison’s bail was set at $250,000, in contrast to Bankman-Fried, who was released on $250 million bail and ordered to be held confined to her parents’ Palo Alto home. not allowed to leave the Her plea bargain protects her from further criminal charges, except for possible tax violations, but does not cover other potential civil charges from other agencies.
The CFTC complaint describes Alameda’s situation after FTX announced plans to sell it to rival Binance. At an all-hands meeting, the committee argued: … She also explained that the “structure” allowed Alameda to “be negative in coins”, so Alameda could access user assets without requiring FTX approval. ”
