Former cryptocurrency executive Caroline Ellison has been sentenced to two years in prison for her role in her former boyfriend Sam Bankman-Fried's theft of $8 billion in customer funds from the now-bankrupt FTX exchange he founded, even as the judge recognized her extensive cooperation with prosecutors.

New York

Caroline Ellison, the ex-girlfriend of former FTX head Sam Bankman-Fried, has been sentenced to two years in prison. Prosecutors describe the collapse of FTX as one of the largest financial frauds in U.S. history. Bankman-Fried was behind the $8 billion theft of customer funds from the now-bankrupt exchange.

The judge highlighted Ellison's significant cooperation with the prosecution in convicting Bankman-Fried. However, the judge rejected the notion of allowing her extensive cooperation and remorse to exempt her from jail time in such a serious case.

Ellison, who was the top executive at FTX and ran Alameda Research, a cryptocurrency-focused hedge fund founded by Bankman-Fried, pleaded guilty to seven felony counts of fraud and conspiracy crimes. These charges could have resulted in a maximum sentence of 110 years. Her sentence was notably lighter due to her cooperation, meeting with prosecutors around 20 times to aid their investigation.

Bankman-Fried's wealth, which peaked at $26 billion according to Forbes, disappeared when FTX collapsed following a series of customer withdrawals in November 2022. Ellison testified that he instructed her to use customer funds to cover losses at Alameda without the customers' knowledge. Despite expressing remorse and regret during the hearing, Judge Lewis Kaplan handed down a two-year sentence, stressing the gravity of the case.



Bankman-Fried's ex-girlfriend sentenced to two years in jail

The ex-girlfriend of former FTX head Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to two years in prison Tuesday. Caroline Ellison was the top executive at the cryptocurrency exchange. Prosecutors have called its collapse one of the biggest financial frauds in U.S. history. Bankman-Fried was behind the $8 billion theft of customer funds from FTX, which he founded. The judge noted Ellison's cooperation with prosecutors in convicting Bankman-Fried last year. However, the judge said he was not comfortable with remorse and cooperation being a get-out-of-jail-free card in a case so serious. Bankman-Fried rode a boom in cryptocurrency prices during the COVID pandemic to a net worth of, according to Forbes magazine, $26 billion by October 2021. Ellison ran Alameda Research, a cryptocurrency-focused hedge fund also founded by Bankman-Fried, from 2021 to 2022. His wealth evaporated when FTX collapsed in November 2022 after a flurry of customer withdrawals. Bankman-Fried was charged a month later with stealing FTX customer funds to plug losses at Alameda. Ellison testified at his trial he directed her and others to take money from FTX's customers without their knowledge. Later, she pleaded guilty to seven felony counts of fraud and conspiracy crimes, which carry a maximum sentence of 110 years in prison. In handing down her two-year sentence, U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan said Ellison's remarkable cooperation was a fundamental distinction between her and Bankman-Fried. She'd met with prosecutors about 20 times to help piece together FTX's unraveling and make their case against him. Earlier in the hearing, she said, "...not a day goes by when I don't think about all the people I hurt," and that she'd thought about leaving Alameda several times before telling the judge, "...I'm sorry I wasn't brave."

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