Former FTX Executive Ryan Salame in Plea Deal Negotiations with Prosecutors

<p>

A former top executive of a subsidiary of FTX is reportedly in talks with federal prosecutors to plead guilty to charges
related to the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange. He has become the latest former executive to exit from FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried's firm who pleaded not guilty in
January.</p><p>According to Bloomberg,
Ryan Salame, the former Co-Chief Executive at FTX Digital Markets, could take a
guilty plea as soon as next month. However, according to the sources who shared
information with the publication on the condition of anonymity, it remains
unclear whether he will testify against <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/news/ftxs-sam-bankman-fried-pleads-not-guilty-to-us-criminal-charges/" target="_blank" rel="follow">Bankman-Fried</a>. </p><p>Ditching Bankman-Fried?</p><p>The other former FTX’s
top executives, Caroline Ellison, Gary Wang, and Nishad Singh, have since
pleaded guilty to playing a role in the <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/terms/e/exchange/">exchange</a>'s multi-billion dollar fraud.
However, Salame has not been charged in connection to the collapsed exchange,
and the details of his plea have not been finalized. </p><p>Salame could potentially
face charges related to the violation of the regulations for political
donations. According to Bloomberg, the former executive, who headed FTX’s Bahamas
subsidiary, was a megadonor to political parties in the US. He reportedly
funded the campaigns of his girlfriend, Michelle Bond, who unsuccessfully vied
for the Republican nomination for a seat in the New York Congress. </p><p>FTX's Political Donations</p><p>Additionally, Salame is
believed to have received huge loans from Alameda Research, the hedge fund
of <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/tag/ftx/" target="_blank" rel="follow">FTX</a>. The Prosecutors in the case have accused
Bankman-Fried of allegedly directing his former executives to make political
donations aimed at influencing policies for the cryptocurrency space. </p><p>Besides that,
authorities have reportedly traced a private jet purchased by Salame while
working for FTX. According to the sources who shared information with Bloomberg,
the plane could be surrendered as part of the plea deal or sold to recover
customers’ funds. Additionally, Salame reportedly purchased five restaurants in
Massachusetts worth USD $6 million after joining the company. </p><p>Meanwhile, <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/ftx-asks-court-to-remove-dubai-unit-from-us-bankruptcy-proceedings/" target="_blank" rel="follow">Finance
Magnates</a> reported a
week ago that FTX had filed a motion to <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/ftx-asks-court-to-remove-dubai-unit-from-us-bankruptcy-proceedings/" target="_blank" rel="follow">exclude
its Dubai-based subsidiary</a> from
the ongoing <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/terms/b/bankruptcy/">bankruptcy</a> proceedings in the US. This month, the exchange filed a
series of court applications proposing a plan to relaunch its offshore
operations.</p>

This article was written by Jared Kirui at www.financemagnates.com.