The founder and former CEO of the cryptocurrency lending platform Celsius Network has been sentenced to 12 years in prison after a prosecutor labeled him a predator who “preyed on hope” by enticing vulnerable customers to risk their life savings for a supposedly safe investment.

Alexander Mashinsky, founder and former CEO of the failed cryptocurrency platform Celsius Network, was sentenced to 12 years in prison on Thursday after pleading guilty to federal fraud charges. A plea agreement had called for up to 30 years.

Federal prosecutors had sought a sentence of at least 20 years for Alex Mashinsky, who attracted customers—many of them ordinary investors—by urging them to “unbank” themselves and park their savings at Celsius.