Manhattan court approves CFTC supplemental orders banning trading, registration for ex‑FTX insiders Ellison and Wang

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission said Wednesday that a federal court in Manhattan entered supplemental consent orders resolving the agency’s civil enforcement cases against two former top FTX and Alameda Research insiders, Caroline Ellison and Zixiao “Gary” Wang. The orders impose multiyear trading and registration bans, while the CFTC said it is not seeking monetary penalties from either at this time because of their cooperation, according to a CFTC press release, Release No. 9285-26.

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York imposed a five-year trading ban and a 10-year registration ban on Ellison, whom the CFTC identified as former Alameda CEO. Wang, whom the agency identified as an Alameda and FTX co-founder, received a five-year trading ban and an eight-year registration ban. The CFTC said the bans run from the date of the initial consent orders, entered Dec. 23, 2022, meaning the trading bans for both run through Dec. 23, 2027. Ellison’s registration ban runs through Dec. 23, 2032, and Wang’s through Dec. 23, 2030.

The supplemental orders also require both Ellison and Wang to continue cooperating with the commission, which regulates U.S. derivatives markets. The agency said, “The supplemental orders acknowledge the Commission is not seeking restitution, disgorgement, and/or civil monetary penalties at this time.” The CFTC said that decision was based in part on Ellison’s and Wang’s cooperation in its FTX-related investigations.

David I. Miller, the CFTC’s director of enforcement, said: “Today’s resolution further underscores the high value this Division places on robust cooperation. Ellison and Wang were senior executives who committed fraud at Alameda and FTX for which they were found liable. Their sanctions, however, reflect their material assistance in the Commission’s FTX-related investigations.”

The agency said its initial consent orders, entered Dec. 23, 2022, had already found Ellison liable on both fraud counts in the amended complaint and Wang liable on the single fraud count charged against him. Both were also permanently enjoined from violating the antifraud provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC regulations.

Ellison and Wang were senior insiders at Alameda Research and FTX, the trading firm and crypto exchange at the center of one of the industry’s highest-profile collapses. The CFTC said both had previously pleaded guilty to several criminal charges, including conspiracy to commit commodities fraud, in related federal criminal cases. The agency also noted that an $11.020 billion forfeiture order exists in those criminal cases for which Ellison and Wang were jointly and severally liable. In a separate civil action against the corporate entities, the CFTC obtained a $12.7 billion judgment in August 2024 against FTX Trading Ltd. and Alameda Research LLC.