Former FTX Co-CEO Announces New Position: Inmate at FCI Cumberland
Most people use LinkedIn to share Promotions or new career moves—Ryan Salame used it to announce his next stop: prison. On Thursday, just days before beginning a seven-and-a-half-year sentence, the former FTX co-CEO posted, "I’m happy to share that I’m starting a new position as [an] inmate at FCI Cumberland."
His dark humor didn’t go unnoticed, with LinkedIn users showering him with ironic congratulations. One user quipped, “Bro went from LinkedIn to LockedIn,” while another added, “Well deserved, Ryan.” Salame, who once held a high-flying position at FTX, is now one of several executives to face serious consequences following the Crypto Exchange’s downfall.
Ryan Salame's Legal Troubles
His legal troubles began following the implosion of FTX in November 2022. Once valued at $32 billion, FTX collapsed amid accusations of fraud and misuse of customer funds. The former FTX co-CEO was charged with making illegal political donations—funneling tens of millions to both Republican and Democratic campaigns—and operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business.
Despite pleading guilty in a Manhattan courtroom, Salame won a small victory: he gets to keep his 2021 Porsche 911 Turbo S, valued too low for government seizure. While the luxury car stays in his possession, he’s required to cover a $1,500 maintenance cost. The slight concession contrasts with the $1.5 billion in assets Salame has forfeited concerning his crimes at FTX.
Salame has maintained that he was “duped” by FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) into believing the company was stable. Prosecutors, however, pointed to Salame’s withdrawal of over $5 million worth of Crypto just as the exchange was faltering.
Larger Fallout from FTX’s Downfall
Salame’s sentencing is part of the larger fallout from FTX’s downfall. Caroline Ellison, former CEO of FTX’s sister firm Alameda Research and a key witness against SBF, has been sentenced to two years in prison. Ellison’s testimony was critical in the case against Bankman-Fried, who received a 25-year sentence for orchestrating one of the largest financial frauds in history, stealing billions from customers to fund lavish ventures.
Unlike Ellison and FTX's co-founder Gary Wang, Salame did not testify at the FTX founder’s trial, a decision that likely contributed to his harsher sentence. Following the viral response to his LinkedIn post, he took to Twitter (now X) to poke fun, tweeting: “Today I learned people still use LinkedIn.”
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