<h2 id="crypto-news">Crypto News</h2>
Former Alameda Research chief executive Caroline Ellison will complete her federal sentence Wednesday after 440 days in custody. The 31-year-old executive is <a href="https://www.bop.gov/inmateloc/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">scheduled</a> for release from a residential reentry facility in New York, according to Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate records.
Ellison transferred to community confinement last October from a Connecticut federal prison where she began serving a two-year sentence in November 2024. Residential reentry facilities <a href="https://www.bop.gov/about/facilities/residential_reentry_management_centers.jsp" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">provide</a> transitional support for inmates nearing release, including employment assistance and financial management services. Her release comes earlier than the original February target date due to good-conduct credit eligibility.
The trading firm executive led Alameda Research, which prosecutors established maintained undisclosed operational ties to cryptocurrency exchange FTX. Ellison dated FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, who established both companies. FTX declared bankruptcy in November 2022 following liquidity crisis and fraud allegations that triggered regulatory investigations.
Ellison entered guilty pleas in December 2022 covering seven criminal counts including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, actual wire fraud, commodities fraud conspiracy, securities fraud conspiracy, and money laundering conspiracy. She provided government cooperation and delivered testimony against Bankman-Fried during his 2023 criminal trial, becoming a key prosecution witness.
Court testimony from Ellison detailed how Bankman-Fried directed criminal conduct that precipitated the exchange's collapse. She described Alameda's access to customer deposits through an unlimited credit facility and direct access to funds sent to a bank account designated fiat@. Her cooperation proved instrumental in securing Bankman-Fried's conviction on multiple felony counts.
Bankman-Fried received nearly 25 years in prison during March 2024 sentencing and faces restitution obligations approaching $11 billion to compensate investors and lenders. He currently pursues appeal efforts in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit following November oral arguments. His scheduled release date extends to 2044, and he has explored presidential pardon possibilities in recent months.
Former FTX technology chief Gary Wang and engineering leader Nishad Singh faced criminal charges but avoided imprisonment through government cooperation agreements. The Securities and Exchange Commission sought officer and director prohibitions against all three cooperating executives last month. Ellison received a 10-year prohibition while Wang and Singh each face eight-year bans from corporate leadership roles.
Federal inmates commonly receive early release through good-conduct credit programs, explaining Ellison's Wednesday departure ahead of her original sentence completion. She spent final custody months at the New York reentry facility after October transfer from Connecticut. Ellison has not indicated plans to return to the crypto industry following her release, and her legal representatives declined comment requests.

Former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison Freed from Federal Custody After 14 Months

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