Former Tech CFO Nevin Shetty Sentenced to Two Years for Thirty-Five Million Dollar Cryptocurrency Embezzlement Scheme

Former tech CFO Nevin Shetty gets 2 years in prison for stealing $35M to fund a crypto side-business. The fraud led to 60 layoffs at his Seattle-based firm.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 6, 2026, 10:21 AM EST

Source: The information in this article was sourced from the U.S. Attorney's Office

The Architect of a "Conservative" Policy

The sentencing of 42-year-old Nevin Shetty marks the conclusion of a high-stakes financial fraud case that nearly bankrupted a growing technology firm. Appointed as CFO in March 2021, Shetty was responsible for managing millions of dollars in venture capital. Ironically, Shetty himself helped draft the company’s strict investment policy, which mandated that all funds be held in money market accounts or similarly conservative vehicles to ensure operational stability. However, federal prosecutors demonstrated during a nine-day trial that while Shetty presented a professional face to the board, he was simultaneously constructing a "side-hustle" designed to leverage his employer's cash for personal gain.

The HighTower Treasury Scheme

In early 2022, Shetty established HighTower Treasury, a private entity with no outside clients. In April 2022 shortly after being informed that his performance as CFO was under review Shetty initiated a series of unauthorized wire transfers. Over a 12-day period, he moved exactly $35,000,100 from the company's Chase bank accounts into his HighTower platform. His objective was to place the capital into "DeFi" (decentralized finance) lending protocols, which promised returns as high as 20%. Shetty intended to pay his employer a small, fixed return while siphoning off the substantial "spread" for himself and his business partner.

A Market Collapse and "Turmoil" for Employees

The scheme relied on the stability of the volatile cryptocurrency market, which failed Shetty in May 2022. Within a month of the theft, the value of the $35 million investment plummeted to nearly zero. Left with no other options, Shetty confessed his actions to fellow executives and was immediately terminated. The financial void left by the embezzlement had devastating real-world consequences; the company was forced to terminate 60 employees to survive the loss. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Tana Lin rebuked Shetty, stating that his greed "threw into complete turmoil" the lives of his former colleagues.