A federal appeals court upheld Friday the fraud conviction and prison sentence of Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the failed FTX cryptocurrency exchange.
His appeal loss came days after he applied for a presidential pardon to wipe his criminal record.
In November 2023, a New York federal jury convicted Bankman-Fried on all seven counts of wire fraud, securities fraud, commodities fraud, and money laundering following the collapse of FTX. He pleaded not guilty to the charges. In March 2024, Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for multiple fraud schemes related to his now-defunct business.
The defendant appealed his conviction and sentence because he felt his guilty verdict was tainted by a judge’s improper evidentiary rulings.
A three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit unanimously disagreed with his argument, stating the evidence against him “was, conservatively stated, robust.”
“While he was publicly reassuring customers, investors and regulators that FTX customer funds were safe, he was simultaneously using FTX as his own personal piggy bank, spending customer funds on real estate, political contributions, and investments,” Circuit Judge Barrington Parker wrote in the opinion. “Given the overwhelming evidence against him, we are not convinced that the isolated statements Bankman-Fried points to, tainted the jury’s verdict.”
Federal prosecutors alleged he stole over $8 billion from FTX customers to cover up massive financial deficits at his crypto hedge fund, Alameda Research. At his trial, the former crypto tycoon claimed he never stole the funds.
In his appeal, Bankman-Fried’s lawyers argued U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan prohibited their client from introducing evidence in court to back up his belief that FTX had enough funds to cover customer withdrawals. The appeals court did not see it the same way.
“FTX customers were defrauded as soon as Bankman-Fried transferred their money to Alameda regardless of how strongly he believed he might later return the money,” Parker wrote.
Following the three-judge panel’s decision, Bankman-Fried could bring his appeal to the full appeals court or the Supreme Court next.
SAM BANKMAN-FRIED APPLIES FOR PARDON
On Monday, the Justice Department revealed that Bankman-Fried submitted a request for a pardon from President Donald Trump. Bankman-Fried has said he is “absolutely” interested in receiving a pardon, but he acknowledges that he is at the president’s mercy. Trump previously said he has “no intention of pardoning” several high-profile inmates, including Bankman-Fried.
The disgraced FTX founder is incarcerated at a low-security federal prison near Santa Barbara, California. He is scheduled for a 2044 release.