A close Sam Bankman-Fried associate is reportedly negotiating with federal prosecutors to plead guilty to criminal charges arising from the collapse of digital asset exchange FTX.
Bloomberg, citing “people familiar with the case,” reports that former FTX Digital Markets co-chief executive Ryan Salame, one of the Republican Party’s largest political donors in the last midterm elections, could enter a plea as early as next month to offenses that include campaign finance law violations.
The details of a potential plea deal are not yet finalized. It’s also not certain whether Salame will strike up a cooperation agreement with the prosecutors to testify against Bankman-Fried, but he could be the fourth FTX executive to plead guilty to one of the largest financial frauds in US history.
Former executives Gary Wang, Caroline Ellison and Nishad Singh already admitted their role in the FTX scheme and will be key witnesses against Bankman-Fried, who is set to face trial in October for diverting billions of customer funds to trading company Alameda Research.
Salame received tens of millions of dollars in loans from Alameda before the FTX crypto empire imploded last year. If his plea deal with the government pushes through, he is set to lose the private jet that he purchased while working at the now-defunct exchange.
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