Former FTX exec Salame to forfeit $1.5 billion, pleads guilty to two criminal counts

Former FTX executive Ryan Salame pleaded guilty Thursday in New York federal court to campaign finance and money-transmitting crimes, and agreed to forfeit more than $1.5 billion.

Salame during his plea admitted that from fall 2021 to November 2022 he made political contributions in his own name when in actually the money came from Alameda Research, FTX’s hedge fund arm, in the amount of tens of millions of dollars.

Those contributions were supported by FTX’s then-CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried.

Salame, who was released on a $1 million bond Thursday faces a maximum possible sentence of 10 years in prison for his crimes.

His sentencing was scheduled for March 6 by Judge Lewis Kaplan in U.S. District Court in Manhattan.

In addition to the monetary forfeiture, which will be paid to the U.S. government, the 30-year-old Salame will pay $5 million to debtors of FTX, the fallen cryptocurrency exchange.

A source told CNBC that Salame is not cooperating with federal prosecutors, who are preparing for the criminal fraud trial of Bankman-Fried.

U.S. Attorney Damien Williams in a statement said, “Ryan Salame agreed to advance the interests of FTX, Alameda Research, and his co-conspirators through an unlawful political influence campaign and through an unlicensed money transmitting business, which helped FTX grow faster and larger by operating outside the law.”

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