Key Takeaways
- Over a dozen crypto executives received prison sentences in the first ten months of 2025.
- The sentences result from charges in the U.S., Brazil, Argentina, and Spain.
- Some offenders managed to avoid jail.
With the conclusion of various trials related to fraud and other forms of misconduct in 2025, courts around the world have handed down punishment to more than a dozen rogue crypto executives.
While some of the offending executives managed to avoid jail time, others were sentenced to more than a decade in prison.
Crypto Executives Jailed in 2025
Alex Mashinsky
After Sam Bankman Fried, Do Kwon, and the recently-pardoned Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ), Alex Mashinsky is arguably the most notorious figure in the history of white collar crypto crime.
The Celsius founder, who pleaded guilty to commodities securities fraud in 2024, managed to dodge the maximum sentence of 20 years sought by prosecutors, but will still spend up to 12 years in prison.
A New York bankruptcy court has also ordered that any claims Mashinsky made to Celcius’ assets be dissalowed.
Rowland Andrade
After he was found guilty of wire fraud and money laundering, Judge Richard Seeborg sent the disgraced crypto CEO Rowland Marcus Andrade to federal prison.
Andrade will spend up to seven years behind bars for his role in the AML Bitcoin scheme, which embezzled millions of dollars by misleading investors with fake deals and technology.
Daniel Schatt and Joseph Podulka
In August, Daniel Schatt and Joseph Podulka were sentenced to 52 months and 36 months in prison respectively.
The Cred CEO and CFO were charged in relation to fraudulent activity that led to the crypto lending company’s bankruptcy in 2020. A separate case against Chief Capital Officer James Alexander is still pending.
Douglas Jae Woo Kim
While perhaps not technically an executive, Douglas Jae Woo Kim deserves a mention for embezzling investors out of $7 million by posing as a legitimate crypto trader. He received a 48 month sentence in July.
Santiago Fuentes and Diego Felipe Fernández
Fraudulent crypto investment schemes aren’t just a problem in the U.S., as demonstrated by the case of Arbistar in Spain.
While prosecutors had sought almost 30 years in prison for mastermind Santiago Fuentes, the judge ultimately settled on eight. Co-conspirator Diego Felipe Fernández received a slightly lower sentence of six years.
Glaidson Acácio dos Santos and Daniel Aleixo Guimarães
For his role overseeing a vast crypto pyramid scheme, Brazilian media dubbed Acácio dos Santos “Bitcoin Pharoah.”
Reflecting the severity of his crimes, which prosecutors linked to corruption, drug trafficking, and the attempted murder of a rival, dos Santos was sentenced to 19 years and two months in prison.
His right-hand man, Daniel Aleixo Guimarães, received 16 years and four months.
Leonardo Cositorto
When it unraveled in 2022, Generación Zoe was Argentina’s largest ever pyramid scheme, resulting in losses of around $120 million for thousands of victims around the world.
After he was extradited from the Dominican Republic earlier this year, architect Leonardo Cositorto was handed a 12-year prison sentence.
Charles O. Parks III (C3PO)
According to the U.S. Justice Department, between January and August 2021, Charles O. Parks III, also known by his X handle C3PO, mined around a million dollars worth of crypto by defrauding cloud providers.
Under the cover of businesses he owned, the one-time crypto influencer stole resources valued at $3.5 million.
The cryptojacking operation eventually landed Parks in prison, with the judge sentencing him to a year and one day behind bars, alongside financial penalties.
Crypto Execs Who Avoided Prison
Aleksei Andriunin
Following his arrest in Portugal and subsequent extradition to the United States, Gotbit founder Aleksei Andriunin was charged with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit market manipulation.
Having already spent eight months locked up by the time of his sentencing, he was sentenced to time served.
Roger Ver
Known to followers as Bitcoin Jesus, Roger Ver was arrested in 2024 for failing to properly report his bitcoin holdings when he expatriated from the United States.
However, the charges were dropped after Ver agreed to pay nearly $50 million in back taxes this year.
Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turõgin
In August, Hashflare founders Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turõgin each received $25,000 fines plus time already served and community service for their role in the $577 million crypto Ponzi.
Each received time served (16 months already in custody), $25k fines, community service and supervised release; no additional prison.
After reaching a deal with the IRS this year, however, he resolved the charges by paying nearly $50 million in back taxes.
VGlobal Accomplices
While V Global’s CEO and other senior executives went to prison for operating the fraudulent crypto exchange, in 2025, three lower-ranking executives, identified as Mr. A, Mrs. B, Mr. C in court, received suspended sentences.
When determining their punishment, Judge Jeon Gyeong-ho accounted for efforts the executives took to repay victims of the KRW 2.8 trillion ($1.97 billion) scam, local media reported.
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James Morales is CCN’s blockchain and crypto policy reporter. He has been working in the news media since 2020, writing about topics such as payments, banking and financial technology. These days, he likes to explore the latest blockchain innovations and the evolving landscape of global crypto regulation.
With an educational background in social anthropology and media studies, James uses his platform as a journalist to explore how new technologies work, why they matter and how they might shape our future.
