Ex-Coinbase manager Ishan Wahi sentenced to prison in first crypto insider trading case

Wahi expressed remorse for his actions and their effect on his friends and family

US prosecutors described the instance as the first insider trading case involving cryptocurrency.

US District Judge Loretta Preska sentenced Ishan Wahi, 32, in Manhattan federal court after the defendant pleaded guilty in February to two counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, Reuters reported.

The scheme involved a “massive abuse” of Coinbase’s trust, Preska said during the sentencing hearing, adding that attempts to cover it up showed that Wahi and his co-defendants knew their actions were wrong.

The Coinbase case is one of several high-profile cryptocurrency-related cases brought by US prosecutors in New York, including one against FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, who has pleaded not guilty.

Prosecutors have said Wahi shared confidential information with his brother Nikhil and their friend Sameer Ramani about which digital assets would be listed on Coinbase, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges.

The tip off allowed the three men to make $1.5 million by trading 55 digital assets ahead of the listing announcements between June 2021 and April 2022, according to prosecutors.

Nikhil Wahi pleaded guilty in September to a wire fraud conspiracy charge, and in January was sentenced to 10 months in prison. Ramani remains at large.

At Tuesday’s hearing, Ishan Wahi expressed remorse for his actions and their effect on his friends and family, several of whom were in court.

“I made a huge mistake that will follow me for the rest of my life,” Wahi said.