Caroline Ellison, the former CEO of Alameda Research LLC, was sentenced to two years in prison on Tuesday. According to New York prosecutors, she was arrested due to her involvement in the FTX crypto fraud case.
Ellison, who testified against her ex-boyfriend and FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried during his trial, received a significantly lighter sentence than her. She could have been jailed for a maximum of 110 years after pleading guilty to seven charges, including fraud.
Her defense team had argued against her prison time. The prosecutors from the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office did not request a specific sentence. They suggested that Judge Lewis Kaplan consider her opinion in this regard.
Ellison played a crucial role as a witness in the trial of Bankman-Fried. She is often referred to as “SBF,” who was sentenced to 25 years in March. She orchestrated one of the largest financial frauds in history. He is currently serving his sentence in prison and has appealed his conviction.
During her testimony, Ellison accused Bankman-Fried of using customer funds to support his riskier ventures. On the other hand, he attempted to shift the blame onto her by labeling her a poor manager.
Once a billionaire before turning 30, Bankman-Fried was seen as a leading figure in the cryptocurrency boom. In just a few months, he transformed his small startup, FTX, which was launched in 2019.
FTX was considered the second-largest cryptocurrency trading platform in the world. However, the trial revealed that the company had misused the assets deposited into FTX for riskier transactions through its sister company.
