Caroline Ellison and Zixiao “Gary” Wang, two executives from Sam Bankman-defunct Fried’s crypto empire, have pleaded guilty and are cooperating with prosecutors. Damian Williams, the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced the news late Wednesday.
Williams did not specify the charges to which the two pleaded guilty, but stated that the guilty pleas were related to their roles as insiders at FTX and its sister company, Alameda Research. Wang co-founded the FTX cryptocurrency exchange and owned a 10% stake in Alameda Research. (The remaining 90% was owned by Bankman-Fried.) Ellison was the CEO of Bankman-trading Fried’s firm Alameda Research. According to The Washington Post, Ellison pleaded guilty to seven counts. According to the WaPo, she faces up to 110 years in prison. Wang entered a guilty plea on four counts and faces up to 50 years in prison.