Crypto19 August, 20262 min read
CFTC Settles With Caroline Ellison and Zixiao “Gary” Wang With Five-Year Trading Bans
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Ellison received five-year trading ban and ten-year registration ban. Wang received five-year trading ban and eight-year registration ban.
6 outlets told this the same way.
CFTC bans Ellison, Wang
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission settled its civil cases against former Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison and FTX co-founder Zixiao “Gary” Wang by issuing supplemental consent orders filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York on Tuesday.
Under the terms described by CoinGape, Ellison received a five-year trading ban and a 10-year registration ban, while Wang received a five-year trading ban and an eight-year registration ban.
CoinGape said the CFTC currently seeks no monetary penalties from Ellison or Wang, citing their cooperation with authorities in the wider FTX investigation.
Bloomberg Law News also framed the outcome as avoiding financial penalties, stating Ellison would be banned from trading for five years and prohibited from registering with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission for 10 years.
TradingView added that the orders require both executives to continue cooperating with the CFTC and that the consent orders resolved the agency’s enforcement actions against them.
Cooperation shapes sanctions
David Miller, the CFTC’s enforcement director, said in TradingView that “Ellison and Wang were senior executives who committed fraud at Alameda and FTX for which they were found liable.” TradingView continued that “Their sanctions, however, reflect their material assistance in the Commission’s FTX-related investigations.” CoinGape reported that the CFTC cited cooperation with authorities and the financial recovery ordered in related criminal proceedings, and it said the court previously found Ellison liable for two fraud counts brought by the CFTC.
CoinGape also stated that Wang was found liable for one fraud count, while both accepted permanent restrictions against future violations of federal commodities laws. Separately, Cointelegraph said the consent orders ended the CFTC’s case after FTX and Alameda agreed to $12.7 billion in disgorgement and restitution payments in August 2024.
No new fines, but forfeiture
CoinGape said the CFTC is not requiring either defendant to pay restitution, disgorgement, or civil monetary penalties, while it cited an $11.02 billion forfeiture order connected with the federal criminal proceedings. DiarioBitcoin similarly said the resolution closed the latest regulatory front “but without new fines, thanks to their cooperation with U.S. authorities,” and it described the CFTC’s trading bans and registration restrictions. DiarioBitcoin added that the decision does not mean the former executives are exempt from financial consequences because both still must answer for a criminal forfeiture of USD 11.02 billion arising from their cases.
CoinGape reported that the restriction periods began on December 23, 2022, when the court entered the original consent orders, and it said both defendants must continue assisting the CFTC under the terms of their settlements. TradingView tied the civil case to the broader FTX matter by noting that the initial December 2022 complaint named Ellison and Wang alongside former FTX CEO Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried.