Government Lawyers Defend Nishad Singh Saying He Provided ‘Substantial Assistance’ in FTX Investigation

Prosecutors said Singh “approached his cooperation with earnest remorse and eagerness to assist.”

He will be sentenced later this month.

Government prosecutors in the case against former FTX executive Nishad Singh have asked the sentencing judge to take into account the “substantial assistance” and “exemplary cooperation” Singh provided to the government in its investigations into FTX.

In a document submitted on Oct. 23, prosecutors said Singh “approached his cooperation with earnest remorse and eagerness to assist.”

Singh aided the government in understanding how FTX’s code permitted the illegal use of customers’ funds, and he identified in detail the transactions by Sam Bankman-Fried that involved the use of stolen money.

“Singh also brought to the Government’s attention criminal conduct that the Government was not aware of and, in some cases, may have never discovered but for Singh’s cooperation. That included information about Bankman-Fried and [Ryan] Salame engaging in one of the largest-ever campaign finance schemes, and instances when Bankman-Fried manipulated FTX’s financials to make its revenue appear greater,” it stated.

The former head of engineering pled guilty to six criminal charges in Feb. 2023, including fraud and conspiracy, related to the collapse of FTX the previous November.

Last week his lawyers asked a federal judge to spare him prison in a sentencing submission document filed on Oct. 16. Describing him as an “uncommonly selfless individual”, they claimed his role at FTX was limited and detailed his cooperation with authorities.

Singh, along with FTX’s former chief technology officer Gary Wang, are both awaiting sentencing.

Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison in March this year after being found guilty on seven different fraud and conspiracy charges. Caroline Ellison, the former CEO of Alameda Research, received two years last month after pleading guilty to the same charges as Bankman-Fried.

The CEO of FTX Digital Markets, Ryan Salame, began a 7.5 year prison sentence this month after pleading guilty to charges of operating an unlicensed money transmitter and conspiring to defraud the Federal Election Commission.

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