Former Alameda Research CEO Ryan Salame calls for ‘fair’ sentence

Former Alameda Research CEO Sam Trabucco, who resigned from the company before the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX and criminal charges against several of its executives, called for the sentencing of former FTX Digital Markets co-CEO Ryan Salame.

In a May 6 character recommendation letter filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, Trabuco said Salame was his best friend and wanted the consequences of his crime to be “just.” FTX's role in misappropriation of user funds. He attributes his friendship with Salame to their shared experience in the crypto space and working with former FTX CEO Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried.

In September 2023, Salame pleaded guilty to conspiracy to conduct an unauthorized money-transmitting business and campaign finance fraud in connection with a contribution he made to his girlfriend Michelle Bond's run for Congress. According to Trabuco, Bond and Salameh now have a son together, and any time in prison could hurt his relationship with his family.

“Ryan deserves to face the consequences of his actions — he understands that intimately,” Trabucco said. I just want those consequences to be fair – for him and for the world, it would be much worse if he wasn't in it at all.

Trabuco has worked as a merchant at Alameda since 2019, eventually becoming co-CEO in 2021 with Caroline Ellison. He resigned in August 2022. Like many FTX and Alameda executives, he has been largely silent on social media since the company collapsed.

According to Salame, FTX co-founder Gary Wang, former FTX director of engineering Nishad Singh and Ellison, Trabuco has not faced criminal charges from US authorities. Bankman-Fried was one of the only individuals to plead not guilty, while the other executives accepted plea deals. It is unclear whether anyone other than SBF remains in custody.

Related: Post-FTX crypto industry needs education before regulation – former Biden adviser

On May 14, Salameh's legal team recommended that the former FTX executive be jailed for more than 18 months. At the time of publication, the prosecutor has not submitted his proposal to the court. Judge Lewis Kaplan, who oversees the SBF's criminal trial, will preside over the sentencing hearing on May 28.

Before Bankman-Fried went under and FTX filed for bankruptcy, Salamee reported the exchange's fraudulent practices to the Bahamas Securities Commission. Authorities later arranged for SBF to be extradited to the United States, where he was indicted and charged with seven criminal counts. In March, Judge Kaplan sentenced Banman-Fried to 25 years in prison. The lawyers filed a notice of appeal.

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