FTX Co-Founder Gary Wang Walks Free with Time Served

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FTX Fallout Finale: Co-Founder Gary Wang Walks Free with Time Served

Written by Aaron S.,

Editor-In-Chief

Last Updated: November 21, 2024

Key Takeaways

Gary Wang’s sentencing included time served, probation, and asset forfeiture for his involvement in FTX's downfall;
Judge Kaplan emphasized Wang’s cooperation, which influenced his relatively mild sentence;
All five executives implicated in the 2022 FTX scandal have now been sentenced.

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FTX Fallout Finale: Co-Founder Gary Wang Walks Free with Time Served

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On November 20, a New York district court delivered its verdict for Zixiao “Gary” Wang, co-founder of FTX, including time served and asset confiscation.

The ruling, delivered by a US district court in New York, marks the conclusion of sentencing for the executives implicated in the 2022 collapse of FTX.

Wang had admitted guilt in December 2022, confessing to fraud-related offenses. His plea came alongside that of Caroline Ellison, former CEO of Alameda Research, a trading firm closely linked to FTX.

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Presiding over all five cases, Judge Lewis Kaplan issued varying sentences to the implicated executives. Sam Bankman-Fried received 25 years behind bars, while Ryan Salame, former co-CEO of FTX Digital Markets, was sentenced to 7.5 years. Nishad Singh, who served as FTX’s director of engineering, received a sentence identical to Wang’s.

Judge Kaplan cited Wang’s cooperation with prosecutors as a factor in determining his relatively lenient punishment. During the sentencing, Wang expressed deep regret, admitting to his moral failures. He stated:

I took the easy path, the cowardly path, instead of doing the right thing. Nothing I do will ever be able to make up for it.

Looking beyond FTX, other high-profile cases have also seen dramatic outcomes. Earlier this month, the mastermind behind the infamous Bitfinex hack was handed a five-year prison sentence. How did one of the largest crypto heists unfold? Read the full story.