Nishad Singh Avoids Prison in Aftermath of FTX Collapse

Nishad Singh, the former head of engineering at FTX and a one-time confidante to Sam Bankman-Fried, will avoid jail time for his role in the collapse of the unregulated crypto exchange. On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan gave Singh a time-served sentence contrasting the prison terms handed down to other FTX officials involved in the FTX collapse case.

Background of Singh’s Role in the FTX Collapse

The sentence of Singh takes into account the court’s recognition that he had cooperated in an investigation and his defense argued for “limited involvement”. Unlike Caroline Ellison, former CEO of Alameda Research, who was knee deep and involved since the inception, it was reported that Singh only became fully aware of FTX’s financial instability two months before the FTX collapse.

Judge Kaplan underscored that and said Singh only learned of the alleged fraud later, which was particularly helpful in disclosing previously unknown facts.

In the course of cooperating with law enforcement, Singh effectively incriminated himself over and over again — even providing prosecutors with evidence crucial to understanding the $8 billion hole in FTX’s books that bolstered allegations against Sam Bankman-Fried. That has been earmarked as a key aspect of the case, especially considering Singh was called to testify in Bankman-Fried’s October trial.

Singh Ordered to Pay $11 Billion in Restitution

Singh got no prison time but was ordered to pay $11 billion in restitution. Singh’s lawyers, led by Andrew Goldstein, said Nishad Singh is willing to take responsibility and cooperate with the government and argued his sentence should reflect that. The defense submitted over 100 letters from Singh’s family and friends about his character and pointed out the fraud was just a small chapter in his life.

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Unlike other FTX execs and how the judge ruled on them, Bankman-Fried who was the ringleader in the scandal that led to the FTX collapse  was sentenced to 25 years. Ryan Salame, the Former FTX Digital Markets CEO who didn’t testify against Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 7.5 years; and Caroline Ellison got 2 years.

Judge Kaplan said Singh’s remorse and cooperation were the mitigating factors that got him leniency.

Family & Friends

Singh’s fiancée, Claire Watanabe, was in the courtroom with his parents and little brother during the sentencing. Watanabe was crying when Kaplan said he wouldn’t get any prison time. Kaplan even spoke directly to Singh’s family and showed compassion and understanding. He said to Singh, “I don’t see anything you did wrong.”

Conclusion: FTX’s Controversial Chapter

The larger picture of the FTX collapse scandal appears even more fractious, with varying degrees of participation by executives in that case as well. Singh’s cooperation can very well affect other investigations currently being held in the crypto space. His sentencing further contributes to the scale of cooperation on which future potential suspects can rely in similar cases as crypto law enforcement undergoes scrutiny.

Singh’s lenience is a show of the importance of cooperation with authorities which will likely become the precedent for crypto-related legal matters. The crypto industry likely won’t mind keeping an eye out for how this may inform future cases or enforcement.

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