FTX co-founder Gary Wang was sentenced to no prison time by a judge Wednesday, following his cooperation with prosecutors. Wang helped the prosecution’s case against Sam Bankman-Fried, testifying in one of the biggest cases of fraud in US history. Wang served as FTX’s chief technology officer during its peak.
Judge Lewis A. Kaplan, who is overseeing the case, praised Wang’s cooperation. Wang was the first person to cooperate after FTX collapsed in November 2022. Additionally, he provided key information to Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicolas Roos that enabled prosecutors to quickly extradite Bankman-Fried from the Bahamas. Roos described Wang’s work since the fraud in heroic terms, saying he was “the first FTX cooperator to come in the door.” Wang’s role in the fraud was minimal according to Roos, and he “did not” create the complicated computer code that enabled the fraud.
Speaking at the sentencing, Wang apologized to customers and investors. “I’m deeply sorry to all the people hurt by my actions,” Wang said. “There were so many things I could have done differently.” The co-founder added that at FTX, he “took the cowardly path instead of doing the right thing. Nothing I do will ever be able to make up for it.”
Roos added that prosecutors wouldn’t have made as much progress in the case if it hadn’t been for Wang’s cooperation. Wang “deciphered basically half the case for us,” he said, adding that it might have taken the government months or years to figure out the code. According to Roos, Wang also created software that is enabling prosecutors to find unrelated financial frauds.
Sam Bankman-Fried, meanwhile, is serving a 25-year prison term for a fraud case that misappropriated over $11 billion of funds that belonged to FTX customers, investors, and lenders.
