In New York, a former executive from FTX who provided pivotal testimony against the company’s founder was granted leniency by a federal judge, resulting in no prison time on Wednesday. The judge acknowledged the former executive’s significant cooperation and his late realization of the fraud that engulfed the cryptocurrency exchange.

Nishad Singh, who previously served as the engineering director for FTX, appeared in court for his sentencing before Judge Lewis A. Kaplan. The judge praised Singh’s contributions, calling his cooperation “remarkable.” It was highlighted during the proceedings that Singh was unaware of the significant misappropriation of customer funds and investor assets until just two months before the company’s collapse, leading to bankruptcy.

Singh, who is 29 years old, emotionally recounted his shock and horror upon discovering the depth of the fraud at FTX while testifying at the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried, the firm’s founder, last year. At the sentencing hearing, seeking to convey his remorse, Singh stated he felt “overwhelmed with remorse” regarding his involvement in the scandal. “I strayed so far from my values, and words can’t express how sorry I am,” he expressed.

Following Bankman-Fried’s conviction in November with a subsequent 25-year prison sentence, Singh’s case took a different trajectory. His attorney, Andrew Goldstein, implored the judge to impose no prison time, arguing that Singh was unaware of the extensive fraud until a short time prior to FTX’s sudden bankruptcy in late 2022. Goldstein, with a background as a federal prosecutor, emphasized that a lenient sentence would set a positive precedent for potential cooperators in other criminal investigations.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicolas Roos recognized Singh’s critical role in assisting the prosecution by providing significant information shortly after the public revelation of the fraud. His cooperation actually led the authorities to discover a range of illicit activities that might have gone unnoticed otherwise, including violations of campaign finance laws as FTX executives engaged in substantial political donations.

Roos elaborated that Singh’s disclosures included pivotal conversations with Bankman-Fried that not only bolstered the government’s case against multiple individuals but also expedited the process of filing charges. Singh’s provision of “documentary evidence the government did not have and likely never would have had” proved invaluable, according to the prosecutor.

Through his immense cooperation and candid revelations, Singh’s case highlights the complexities and nuances that arise in high-stakes financial fraud investigations. The judicial outcome represents a significant movement in addressing the ramifications of corporate misconduct in the cryptocurrency industry.