Braden Karony, the former CEO of SafeMoon, received a sentence of 100 months in federal prison due to his involvement in a significant cryptocurrency fraud tied to the project's liquidity pool. A jury found Karony guilty of multiple charges including securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering, with prosecutors successfully demonstrating that he misappropriated funds from investors while falsely claiming these assets were secure and locked away.
Karony's actions included withdrawing over $9 million in cryptocurrency and engaging in manipulative trading practices designed to artificially inflate the price of the SFM token. This deceitful strategy involved using wallets that he presented as untouchable, further eroding investor trust.
In the Eastern District of New York, U.S. District Judge Eric Komitee delivered the sentence, which followed a hearing where the defense cited Karony’s challenging upbringing. However, compelling testimonies from victims who experienced significant financial losses highlighted the serious impact of Karony’s fraudulent activities.
Launched in 2021 on the BNB Chain, SafeMoon portrayed itself as a community-oriented decentralized finance token that employed a transaction fee model where 10% of every transaction was involved. At its height in April 2021, following an extensive marketing campaign led by influencers, SafeMoon’s market capitalization soared to billions. Yet, regulators disclosed that the team had diverted investor funds for their personal use while assuring users of the security of their investments.
Charges from the SEC and DOJ emerged in November 2023, detailing undisclosed control over wallets and improper diversion of funds. In the following month, the project filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, resulting in the token becoming largely illiquid. Additionally, Thomas Smith, SafeMoon’s former CTO, admitted guilt in 2025 to related conspiracy charges, confirming that the team had indeed misled investors and improperly extracted liquidity from the project’s assets.
Karony’s conviction stands out as one of the notable criminal cases involving what is often termed a meme coin. Prosecutors emphasized that the project exploited the increasing interest in decentralized finance and the trust of investors, executing what could be characterized as organized theft under the pretense of innovative finance.