Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried failed to overturn his fraud conviction and 25-year prison sentence related to FTX’s collapse after a three-judge appeals panel rejected his request for relief.
The unanimous decision by the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan, New York, found that the government’s case against Bankman-Fried was, in the court’s words, “prudently and robustly stated,” according to Reuters.
Source: Toby Cunningham
“While he publicly reassured customers, investors, and regulators that FTX customer funds were safe, he simultaneously used FTX as his own personal piggy bank, spending customer funds on real estate, political contributions, and investments,” Circuit Judge Barrington Parker wrote.
The move comes as Bankman-Fried seeks another avenue to challenge his conviction. As Cointelegraph recently reportedhe formally requested a presidential pardon from U.S. President Donald Trump, with the request appearing in early June on the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Pardon website.
Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2024 after being convicted of fraud and conspiracy stemming from the multibillion-dollar collapse of FTX.
Related: Sam Bankman-Fried steps up support for Trump after Ellison’s release
Bankman-Fried’s pardon request faces great difficulties
In a recent interview with Fox Business, Bankman-Fried said he was “absolutely” seeking a presidential pardon for Donald Trump. However, the former FTX CEO does not appear to have much support from the president.
Trump told the New York Times in January that he had no plans to pardon Bankman-Fried. A White House spokesperson also declined to comment on the pardon request, referring Bloomberg last week to the president’s earlier remarks.
Still, Trump has shown a willingness to issue high-profile pardons, including one to Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht, shortly after returning to office.
Ulbricht operated the dark web marketplace Silk Road, which used Bitcoin as its primary payment method. He was serving two life sentences plus 40 years before Trump pardoned him in January 2025.
Related: FTX Law Firm Fenwick & West to Pay Victims $54 Million in Settlement
