FTX’s Nishad Singh to pay $3.7M, accept CFTC market bans

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on April 1 finalized a supplemental consent order requiring Nishad Singh, former head of engineering at FTX, to pay $3.7 million in disgorgement. The order also imposes a five-year ban on trading in CFTC-regulated markets and an eight-year bar on registration. It resolves the regulator’s case tied to FTX’s collapse and the misuse of customer funds.

The CFTC indicated it is not imposing additional restitution or civil monetary penalties at this time, citing Singh’s cooperation with investigators.

“The defendant engaged in, and aided, significant violations of the Act and CFTC regulations as the former FTX head of engineering, and the consent orders reflect the severity of these violations,” Enforcement Director David Miller noted in a statement. “But this resolution also reflects the Commission’s commitment to rewarding and incentivizing material assistance in Division investigations.”

The agency filed its case in February 2023, accusing Singh of fraud by misappropriation and aiding and abetting fraud by former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried. An initial consent order was entered in April 2023, finding him liable and securing his cooperation with the investigation. The CFTC had initially sought restitution, civil penalties, and permanent trading and registration bans. The initial and supplemental orders resolve the enforcement action against him.

In a statement, attorneys for Singh wrote that he was grateful to conclude the matter and were pleased the CFTC recognized his limited role and extensive cooperation.

Singh has faced related actions from other US authorities. The Securities and Exchange Commission brought a civil case in February 2023 alleging misuse of customer assets and fraud by misappropriation. That matter was resolved in December with an eight-year industry bar. In a separate criminal case after FTX’s bankruptcy, federal prosecutors charged Singh and several colleagues with offenses including fraud and campaign finance violations. After cooperating with prosecutors and testifying against Bankman-Fried, he received a sentence of time served and three years of supervised release.

FTX filed for bankruptcy in November 2022, an event that drained crypto liquidity and eroded user confidence in digital asset markets. Since then, US regulators and prosecutors have pursued cases against the exchange’s leadership over fraud and misuse of customer funds. The CFTC stated that the supplemental consent order with Singh, together with last year’s initial order, brings its case against him to a close.