Founding and Early Team of SafeMoon
The SafeMoon project officially launched in March 2021, created by SafeMoon LLC. Its core founding team members included:
- Founder/Creator: Kyle Nagy (aka “SafemoonDev”)
- Chief Executive Officer (CEO): Braden John Karony (aka “CPT_HODL_T_MUN”)
- Chief Technology Officer (CTO): Thomas Smith (aka “papa”)
In the early stages of the project, the team expanded to include Thomas Smith (Chief Business Officer), Hank Wyatt (Chief Technology Officer), Jack Haines (Chief Operating Officer), and other development and support staff. In March 2022, SafeMoon also appointed Lynn Spraggs as Director of Cryptography, Robert Spraggs as Director of Technology, and Jake Hammock as VP of Research and Development.
Fraud Allegations and Legal Proceedings
The operations of the SafeMoon project and its core team later encountered severe legal challenges. On November 1, 2023, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed charges against SafeMoon LLC and its creator Kyle Nagy, CEO John Karony, and CTO Thomas Smith. They were accused of orchestrating a large-scale fraud scheme through the unregistered sale of crypto asset securities, involving securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering.
The charges alleged that the defendants falsely claimed to investors that funds in the liquidity pool were locked and inaccessible, but in reality, they misappropriated over $200 million in crypto assets for personal use, including purchasing luxury cars and real estate. John Karony and Thomas Smith were arrested in November 2023, while founder Kyle Nagy remains at large.
Sentencing of Key Members and Project Termination
Following the progression of legal proceedings, the case saw clear developments. In May 2025, John Karony was convicted by a federal jury of conspiracy to commit securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering. Subsequently, on February 10, 2026, John Karony was sentenced to 100 months (approximately 8.3 years) in prison and ordered to forfeit approximately $7.5 million. Thomas Smith pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges in October 2025 and chose to cooperate with federal investigators.
As a result, SafeMoon LLC was dissolved in 2023. In December of the same year, the company filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection and was subsequently acquired by VGX Foundation. Although the SFM token technically still exists on the blockchain, the SafeMoon project no longer operates as an active crypto platform. In 2025, VGX Foundation announced plans to transform SafeMoon into a memecoin on the Solana blockchain, but the original project has been completely terminated.
SFM Token Market Status and Risk Warning
Given that the SafeMoon project has been dissolved, and its founders and core team members face fraud charges and convictions, the token no longer has an active trading market. Currently, there are no reliable active trading channels for this token, and investors should be fully aware of its extremely high risks.
