Caroline Ellison, the former Chief Executive Office of Alameda Research, the now defunct cryptocurrency hedge fund controlled by FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, has been sentenced to 24 months in prison for her role in a multi-billion dollar fraud at the cryptocurrency exchange, according to a report by Bloomberg.
Ellison, 29, previously pleaded guilty and provided key testimony against Bankman-Fried during his trial on multiple fraud charges in November.
During her nearly three days of testimony, Ellison expressed remorse and pointed to Bankman-Fried as the driving force behind FTX’s illegal activities. She admitted to feeling relieved when the company collapsed because it meant she no longer had to lie.
While US District Judge Lewis A Kaplan commended Ellison’s cooperation with prosecutors, calling it “very, very substantial”, and praised her for consistent testimony, noting that her account aligned with the evidence presented in court, he determined that a prison sentence was necessary due to the severity of the fraud.
In her testimony, Ellison admitted that she manipulated balance sheets to conceal Alameda’s borrowing of about $10 bn from FTX customer funds during the crypto market downturn in June 2022.
Ellisonm who is scheduled to report to prison on 7 November and will serve her sentence in a minimum-security facility, has also been ordered to forfeit $11bn, according to Bloomberg.
