A cryptocurrency executive found it ‘hilariously funny’ that the Oregon Democratic Party reported his donation under another name, almost leading to federal criminal charges.
While Nishad Singh was working as an engineer for the now-discredited FTX at its Bahamas headquarters, a colleague he barely knew told him to send $500,000 to the Party to make Singh and the company look good, according to Oregon Live.
Singh authorized the transfer of half a million dollars through his account at Nevada-based Prime Trust, which specializes in transferring cryptocurrencies to regular bank accounts.
Oregon Democrats scrambled to figure out how to credit the massive contribution after receiving it on Oct. 4, 2022, trying to meet a deadline to report it to state campaign finance regulators.
While Nishad Singh was working as an engineer for the now-disgraced FTX, a colleague he barely knew told him to send $500,000 to the Party to make Singh and the company look good.
Records show they emailed Singh and others connected with the transfer, discussed the matter internally and investigated Prime Trust, Oregon Live reported, noting that Singh was never contacted about the donation.
The Party also ignored multiple warnings that Prime Trust was not the source of the money.
Singh’s name appeared on the wire transfer documents, identifying him as the “registered donor.”
Prime Trust was ultimately included as a donor after an FTX contractor who helped arrange the payment told Oregon Democrats: “Nishad prefers Prime Trust (although not very strongly), so go with that. Thanks!”
Singh authorized the transfer of half a million dollars through his account at Nevada-based Prime Trust, which specializes in transferring cryptocurrencies to regular bank accounts.
Although Singh told investigators he had no reason to withhold his name from the donation, the Party did just that, misquoting Singh’s wishes to protect his identity.
Singh had no idea about the misrepresentation until an Oregon Live reporter questioned officials about the donation in October 2022, the outlet said.
He found out about it through a FTX Signal group chat.
Oregon Democrats scrambled to figure out how to credit the massive contribution after receiving it on Oct. 4, 2022, trying to meet a deadline to report it to state campaign finance regulators.
“Singh dismissed it at the time as a clerical error and thought it was ‘hilariously funny,'” an Oregon Department of Justice official wrote, according to Oregon Live.
The error prompted the Democratic-led Secretary of State’s Office to propose fining the party $35,000 for the misrepresentation, an amount later reduced to $15,000 with a promise not to pursue criminal charges.
The Oregon Department of Justice closed its investigation last month, citing insufficient evidence that Oregon Democrats knew they were providing false information.
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