I just read about Gary Wang. He avoided prison after the FTX mess. How did he do that?

Good question. He cooperated with the government by providing evidence and explaining how the fraud worked.

Oh, so he helped them catch the bigger fish, like Sam Bankman-Fried?

Exactly! Wang was one of the first people to tell the authorities what really happened at FTX.

But wasn’t he part of the fraud too? How come he didn’t get a long sentence?

He pled guilty to several charges, but the court considered his cooperation. They said he helped uncover key details about how customer funds were misused.

What kind of details?

Wang explained how FTX’s code allowed Alameda Research, another company owned by Bankman-Fried, to take customer money without permission.

That’s messed up. But why didn’t Wang stop it earlier?

He admitted he made mistakes and didn’t speak up when he should have. He also said he’s sorry and wants to make amends.

What about his sentence? Did he get off completely?

No, he got three years of supervised release and had to forfeit $11 billion. But no jail time, which is lenient compared to others involved.

Wow, $11 billion! That’s huge. Did anyone else avoid prison?

Yes, another executive, Nishad Singh, also avoided prison. But others, like Caroline Ellison and Ryan Salame, got prison time.

I guess it’s better to cooperate early, huh?

That’s true. The judge even said Wang deserved credit for his help. Plus, he’s been using his programming skills to build tools that detect fraud.

So he’s trying to fix things now?

Yes, he’s working on software to catch illegal activity in crypto and stock markets. The government is even using some of his tools.

It sounds like he’s trying to turn things around. Still, this FTX story is wild.

It is. It shows how important trust and transparency are in crypto—and why regulations are needed.