Weekly Crypto Legal Roundup: FTX Case Progresses, Ex-Congressman Fined, Soldier Fights Insider Trading Charges

Michelle Bond’s legal team has asked a federal court to exclude evidence related to her husband Ryan Salame’s guilty plea in the FTX case. Bond faces campaign finance charges alleging her 2022 congressional run was partly funded through FTX-linked contributions facilitated by Salame, who is currently serving a 90-month sentence. Her lawyers argued his plea has no bearing on her own knowledge or intent, calling it unfairly prejudicial if introduced at trial.

Former Congressman Fined Over Prediction Market Bets

George Santos, expelled from Congress in 2023, has been ordered to pay $35,000 in penalties and disgorged profits after the CFTC found he made misleading social media posts about his State of the Union attendance while holding related Kalshi contracts. The misrepresentations reportedly helped him earn over $17,500. Santos is now barred from trading on prediction markets for three years.

Soldier Seeks Dismissal in Polymarket Insider Trading Case

Gannon Ken Van Dyke, a US soldier accused of earning over $400,000 on Polymarket using nonpublic information tied to the operation involving Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro, has filed a motion to dismiss the charges. His defense argues the Commodity Exchange Act’s treatment of event contracts as swaps is too ambiguous to support the case. He has pleaded not guilty, with trial potentially starting in late 2026 or early 2027.