Caroline Ellison has revealed that her ex-boyfriend and founder of the crypto exchange FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, led her to commit fraud.

Ellison disclosed this in the trial of Mr Bankman-Fried, who is charged with fraud and money laundering.

She explained that her former boss directed a risky strategy that relied on the support of FTX deposits.

FTX was once one of the biggest platforms in the world where crypto investors could buy and trade digital currencies. It went bankrupt in November, with more than $8bn (£6.51bn) reported missing.

Prosecutors claim that the fall came after Mr Bankman-Fried stole billions in customer money, allegedly using the funds to buy property, make political donations and fund his crypto trading firm Alameda Research.

According to Allison’s testimony, Bankman-Fried directed her to falsify Alameda’s balance sheets to keep lenders at bay amid a downturn in cryptocurrency markets in 2022.

“He was the one who set up these systems that allowed Alameda to take the money and he was the one who directed us to take customer money to repay our loans,” Ms Ellison said.

She claimed he directed her to provide loans to FTX executives and sometimes to buy digital currencies to support their values, even when it led Alameda to lose money.

“For any major decisions, I would always run them by Sam,” she said. “He directed me to commit these crimes.”

“I felt a sense of relief that I didn’t have to lie anymore,” she said tearfully.

During her testimony, Ellison emphasised that Bankman-Fried did not adhere to principles like “don’t lie” and “don’t steal” and described himself as a “utilitarian” who believed that the most crucial rule was to achieve the greatest good for the greatest number of people.

Ellison, along with two other former members of Bankman-Fried’s inner circle, have pleaded guilty to fraud charges. They’ve also agreed to cooperate with the Manhattan US attorney general’s office, reports Reuters.

However, Bankman-Fried has entered a not-guilty plea to two counts of fraud and five counts of conspiracy. He also contends that while he made mistakes running FTX, he never intended to steal funds.

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