Ex-FTX exec under investigation for illegal donations to girlfriend's political campaign

Author: Rodney Holmes, CRYPTOSAURUS; Compiler: Songxue, Jinse Finance

Overview

Former FTX executive Ryan Salame under investigation for allegedly making illegal donations to girlfriend’s political campaign.

Federal prosecutors in Manhattan are investigating Salame’s donations to Michelle Bond during her campaign for the Republican nomination.

Salame has been the target of investigators since the collapse of FTX and the arrest of CEO Sam Bankman-Fried on allegations of illegal political contributions.

A former executive of bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX is reportedly under investigation for allegedly making illegal donations to his girlfriend’s political campaign.

Federal prosecutors in Manhattan are investigating a series of donations made by former FTX executive Ryan Salame to his then-girlfriend Michelle Bond during her bid for the Republican nomination in the Long Island congressional district. Specifically, they are looking into money diverted from Salame to Bond, as well as loans made by candidates to their own campaigns.

Bond’s candidacy was backed by prominent Conservative figures, and she received more than $56,000 in donations from Salame and other FTX employees, according to Federal Election Commission records.

In total, Bond has received more than $659,000 in campaign contributions in 2022.

Salame has been the target of federal investigators since the collapse of FTX last year and the arrest of its disgraced CEO Sam Bankman-Fried for illegal political contributions.

Salame, who previously headed FTX Bahamas, is considered a prolific political donor who has made large donations to Republican candidates, including Bond’s fellow Long Island Republican, Rep. George Santos.

Salame allegedly alerted Bahamian authorities to suspicious transactions two days before FTX collapsed, sparking an investigation into funds diverted to Alameda Research.

In April, FBI agents raided a Salame home in Washington, D.C., as part of an investigation into Bankman-Fried’s political activism. Federal authorities are investigating Salame’s donations totaling an estimated $24 million during the 2022 midterm elections, which they claim were misappropriated from FTX client funds.

Bond, for her part, ran a campaign that included pro-cryptocurrency stances, though those stances didn’t appear to feature prominently in her campaign. Previously, she served as chair of the Digital Asset Market Association, a lobby group that advocates for pro-cryptocurrency policies in Washington, D.C.