Former Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison gets new job at Manifund

  • Manifund hired Caroline Ellison for technical, operational and philanthropic funding work.
  • Ellison began a work trial on July 13 and joined full time on August 10.
  • SEC proposed restrictions bar Ellison from officer or director roles for 10 years.

Caroline Ellison, the former Alameda Research CEO who cooperated with prosecutors after FTX collapsed, has joined nonprofit grant platform Manifund full time after initially working under the pseudonym Carol. Manifund co-founder Austin Chen said Ellison began a trial role on July 13 and became a full-time employee on August 10. Her duties include improving the platform's technical infrastructure, logistics and customer support, as well as studying more effective ways to direct philanthropic funding; she will not select grant recipients. An early assignment produced a reconciliation tool that identified misreported Manifund transactions totaling five to six figures. Ellison pleaded guilty in December 2022 to fraud and conspiracy charges tied to FTX, testified against founder Sam Bankman-Fried and was released in January 2026 after beginning a two-year prison term in November 2024. Proposed SEC judgments filed in December 2025 would bar her from serving as an officer or director for 10 years and impose a five-year conduct-based injunction, while the CFTC has cited a five-year trading ban and 10-year registration bar. Chen acknowledged that allowing Ellison to use a pseudonym compromised Manifund's transparency, but defended the appointment as an opportunity for redemption. Cate Hall, former CEO of Astera Institute, criticized the decision as poor judgment.

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