UNCHAINED: FTX's Ryan Salame Is Going to Prison. Here’s What He Has to Say

As former FTX executive Ryan Salame heads to prison, he blames Alameda’s lawyers, says prosecutors misled his attorneys, and explains why he thinks Caroline Ellison is at least as guilty as Sam Bankman-Fried.

Ryan Salame, the former CEO of FTX Digital Markets, is headed to prison, but not before sharing his side of the story. Ryan talks candidly about the decisions he made at FTX, why he withdrew millions of dollars worth of assets in the days leading up to its bankruptcy, and the backstory behind the Thai prostitute trading scheme to unfreeze Alameda’s funds in China. He also disputes the claims about his campaign finance violations, while explaining why he thinks Caroline Ellison is “at least as guilty as SBF” and that Nishad Singh lied. 

Show highlights:

Ryan’s life pre-FTX and how he got into cryptoHis three attempts to quit working at FTXHow Ryan committed campaign finance violationsWhy Ryan disputes claims that FTX misled banks and misused customer fundsHow Ryan was involved in setting up trading accounts with the identities of Thai prostitutes to unfreeze Alameda’s fundsWhether Ryan was involved in bribing a Chinese officialWhy he withdrew millions of dollars worth of assets from his FTX accounts right before its bankruptcyWhy Ryan claims he was cooperative with prosecutors, despite common beliefHow he refuses to comment on his wife Michelle Bond's case, but denies wrongdoingWhy Ryan pleaded the Fifth AmendmentHis allegations that prosecutors lied to his lawyers about whether they would pursue charges against MichelleWhy he thinks that SBF could have never coerced Caroline Ellison and whether Ellison is “equally guilty” as SBFWhy Ryan believes Nishad Singh lied to save himself and his take on Gary WangHow, if he didn’t know about the fraud, he could be so certain that Caroline or Nishad liedWhether the legal advice from FTX’s and Alameda’s lawyers should have been considered in Bankman-Fried's trialWhether testimony from more employees could have created reasonable doubt in SBF's trialWhy Ryan is going to law schoolHis plans post-prisonWhat Ryan learned from the FTX debacle

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Guest:

Ryan Salame, former CEO of FTX Digital Markets

Unchained Podcast is Produced by Laura Shin Media, LLC. Distributed by CoinDesk.

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