Ryan Salame, a former high-ranking executive at cryptocurrency exchange FTX, is set to plead guilty to criminal charges related to a massive fraud case against Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of FTX, two people with knowledge of the matter said. matter, a step that raises the pressure on Mr. Bankman-Fried before his trial next month.
A federal court hearing is scheduled for Thursday afternoon where Mr. Salame is expected to enter his guilty plea, according to the people and a notice sent by federal prosecutors. Mr. Salame is under investigation for campaign finance violations, but it was not immediately clear what charges he faced.
Mr. Salame, 30, who runs FTX’s subsidiary in the Bahamas and has been a prolific donor to Republican politicians, is set to become the fourth executive in Mr. Bankman-Fried admitted to criminal conduct since FTX collapsed in November. Three of Mr.’s closest colleagues. Bankman-Fried — Nishad Singh, Caroline Ellison and Gary Wang — have pleaded guilty to fraud charges and agreed to cooperate against him.
Mr. Salame’s approval is previously reported by Bloomberg.
A spokesperson for Mr. Salame did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
FTX filed for bankruptcy last November in a stunning collapse that became a symbol of the crypto industry’s hubris. With Mr. Salame’s help, Mr. Bankman-Fried made FTX a household name, endorsed by celebrities and politicians. Then the company imploded within days, and customers lost more than $8 billion in deposits.
Mr. Bankman-Fried, 31, was arrested in December and charged with seven criminal counts, including wire fraud and securities fraud. He is accused of using billions of dollars in FTX customer funds to finance wealthy real estate purchases, political donations and investments in other companies. He has pleaded not guilty, and his trial is scheduled to begin Oct. 3. Last month, the bail of Mr. Bankman-Fried was overturned and sent to prison after a judge ruled that he twice tried to tamper with witnesses in the case.
A spokesman for Mr. Bankman-Fried.
For many years, Mr. Salame is one of the top advisors of Mr. Bankman-Fried and an enthusiastic public supporter of FTX. A native of the Berkshires, Mr. Salame for Mr. Bankman-Fried at Alameda Research, a crypto hedge fund run by Mr. Bankman-Fried in Hong Kong at the time. When Mr. Bankman-Fried moved FTX to the Bahamas, Mr. Salame was the main person who contacted the local government.
As FTX grew, Mr. Salame became one of crypto’s richest executives and began using some of his wealth to buy popular restaurants in Lenox, Mass., in the Berkshires. He received $87 million in bonuses and loans from Alameda, according to court records, and was known for his taste in private jets and luxury cars.
Mr. Salame has also been active in the political scene in Washington, where he describes himself as a “budding Republican megadonor.” He donated $24 million in the 2022 midterm elections, mostly to Republicans, and began dating Michelle Bond, a crypto lobbyist who lost for Congress as a Republican from Long Island, NY
The explosion of the business empire of Mr. Bankman-Fried became the target of Mr. Salame for federal prosecutors. In April, the FBI conducted a search of the Potomac, Md., home he shared with Ms. Bond. The agents seized the phones belonging to Mr. Salame and Ms. Bond.
Mr. Salame was also directly implicated in the allegations against Mr. Bankman-Fried. In legal documents, prosecutors claimed that Mr. Bankman-Fried enrolled his executives in a “straw donor” scheme to avoid limits on campaign contributions. They said he hired executives as proxies to donate tens of millions of dollars to both parties, effectively on behalf of the company. An amended indictment against Mr. Bankman-Fried identified Mr. Salame’s donations as part of the scheme
Prosecutors eventually dropped the campaign finance charge against Mr. Bankman-Fried, citing procedural issues with his extradition from the Bahamas. But in a court appearance last month, prosecutors said they would use the campaign finance allegations to support other charges Mr. Bankman-Fried.
Benjamin Weiser contributed reporting. Jack Begg contributed research.
