Court delivers a ruling.
A guy gets escorted to a van to go serve his time.
But wait,
Every new page deserves a round of applause (or booo!) on a professional networking site.
Unlike you or your neighbor next block who use LinkedIn to announce a new promotion, a new job or the formation of a new company, Ryan Salame, a former FTX executive, went on LinkedIn to announce his new position as a prison inmate.
After the dumpster fire that erased FTX, the company’s execs have been racking up fraud charges like a degen filling bags after a market dip.
Ryan Salame, who was once co-CEO of FTX Digital Markets, kicked off his seven-and-a-half-year fraud vacation to prison.
But not before blessing LinkedIn with a post so ridiculous, it’s made our recent timeline of questionable "thought leadership" look almost sane.
On Thursday, just before he traded his tuxedo for stripes, the former FTX co-CEO Ryan Salame graced LinkedIn with:
“I’m happy to share that I’m starting a new position as an inmate at FCI Cumberland."
His post didn’t go unnoticed—LinkedIn users were quick to drop ironic congratulations like confetti at a pity party.
One user nailed it with, “Bro went from LinkedIn to LockedIn.” Another chimed in with, “Well deserved, Ryan.”
The Day Everything Burned Down
Once a high-flyer at FTX, Salame’s now joined the elite club of crypto execs learning that fraud has serious side effects.
His legal woes started right after FTX imploded in November 2022.
FTX, a prominent global exchange once flaunting a $32 billion valuation, went down in flames amid fraud accusations and misuse of customer funds.
The former FTX co-CEO found himself in hot water for political donations—funneling tens of millions to both Democrat and Republican campaigns.
In a Manhattan courtroom, he pleaded guilty but snagged a tiny win: he got to keep his 2021 Porsche 911 Turbo S which was valued too low to qualify for government seizure.
While he holds on to his luxury ride, he does have to cough up $1,500 for maintenance. A small price to pay, considering he’s already kissed $1.5 billion in assets goodbye for his FTX crimes.
Salame Denied Accusations, Claimed SBF Duped Him
Salame claims he was “duped” by FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) into thinking the company was rock solid.
Read also: Doctors Make Mental Health Claim for Bankman-Fried as Ellison Faces Jail
You know, that sort of thing where swears the Titanic is unsinkable or there’s nothing weird about the Demeter.
However, prosecutors weren’t buying it, especially since Salame quietly withdrew over $5 million in crypto right when the ship started taking on water.
Meanwhile, his sentencing is just another chapter in the FTX drama.
Caroline Ellison, the former CEO of Alameda Research and star witness against SBF, already snagged two years behind bars. It appears like the FTX reunion tour is heading straight to prison.
Unlike Caroline Ellison and co-founder Gary Wang, Salame decided not to take the stand at SBF’s trial. That move probably helped earn him a longer stay in the clink.
After his LinkedIn post went viral, Salame switched gears to Twitter (now X) to keep the laughs coming.
He tweeted, “Today I learned people still use LinkedIn.”
Today I learned people still use LinkedIn
— Ryan Salame (@rsalame7926) October 11, 2024
If nothing else, he’s got a career in social media humor waiting for him when he’s out.
Dayo Paul
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