Former FTX Crypto Engineer Nishad Singh Fined $3.7M by CFTC, Avoids Prison

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In an utterly shocking twist (not), Nishad Singh, the former Director of Engineering at FTX and FTX US, has been hit with a $3.7 million fine by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). This is in connection with his role in the spectacular $8 billion debacle that triggered the infamous FTX collapse in November 2022. The fine, part of a supplementary consent order finalized on April 1, 2026, resolves the CFTC’s civil case against Singh. Not exactly April Fools’ material, unfortunately.

Singh, who apparently had a flair for code and bad decisions, pleaded guilty to federal charges, gave the DOJ all the gossip, and managed to avoid a jail cell. Well, at least a cushy government job could be in his future. The CFTC’s final ruling slapped him with no additional civil penalties beyond the $3.7 million, though it’s clear that his insider info had a price.

One wonders if this “outcome” has more to do with how useful Singh’s “cooperation” was for the investigation, rather than his actual role in this epic failure of financial engineering. Let’s face it-he spilled the beans and got a golden ticket out of prison. Who wouldn’t?

⚡️FORMER FTX ENGINEERING HEAD FINED $3.7M BY CFTC

Former FTX engineering head Nishad Singh agreed to pay $3.7M to settle a CFTC case over FTX’s collapse.

He also faced SEC and DOJ charges but avoided major prison time after cooperating.

– Coin Bureau (@coinbureau) April 2, 2026

Building a crypto empire isn’t just about finding the right tech-it’s about finding the right people to back you up when things go south. The FTX scheme wasn’t just some rogue trading record; it was crafted by those who knew exactly how the code worked. And Nishad was one of them. In 2019, he implemented a little something called the “allow negative flag.” This cheeky little feature allowed Alameda Research to hold negative balances, meaning they had unlimited, unreported credit against customer funds. A dream come true for those who like to play with other people’s money.

Not to be outdone, Singh upped the ante in 2020 by tweaking the liquidation engine so that Alameda could avoid the automatic liquidation protocols that everyone else was subject to. Oh, and let’s not forget the small detail of raising their borrowing ceiling to a staggering $65 billion. Did anyone think to mention this to FTX customers? Of course not!

The fine of $3.7 million isn’t exactly a new punishment. It’s actually a return of his profits-earned from pulling out customer funds right before the big crash. Yes, he bought himself some real estate with the money that wasn’t really his, just a few weeks before FTX fell apart. How quaint.

This fine was already in the works back in April 2023, when Singh was permanently banned from violating the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA). The latest order simply formalized the return of his “illegally obtained” profits, slapped on a five-year trading ban, and an eight-year “you’re not welcome in crypto” sentence. All in all, not a bad deal if you ask him. He gets to keep the house, but he can’t touch crypto again for a while. Fair trade.

David Miller from the CFTC made it clear that the light financial terms reflect Singh’s “cooperation with investigators.” So yes, the moral of the story is: if you’re going to destroy billions, be sure to spill all the tea to the authorities and you might just avoid the worst of it. Who said crime doesn’t pay?

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2026-04-03 14:43