Sam Bankman-Fried loses appeal to overturn fraud convictions and prison
Former crypto magnate Sam Bankman-Fried has failed to overturn his fraud conviction and 25-year sentence for the collapse of FTX. The appeals court upheld the verdict, calling the evidence 'robust'.
Former cryptocurrency billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried has lost his bid to overturn his fraud conviction and 25-year prison sentence over the collapse of the FTX exchange he founded. In a unanimous decision on Friday, a three-judge panel of the Manhattan-based 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals said prosecutors’ evidence against Bankman-Fried “was, conservatively stated, robust.”
Circuit Judge Barrington Parker wrote on behalf of the panel: “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.”
Bankman-Fried’s lawyers did not immediately respond to a request for comment. They may next ask all active judges on the 2nd Circuit to hear the case, or ask the US Supreme Court to take it up. Bankman-Fried is also seeking a pardon from President Donald Trump, according to the Department of Justice’s Office of the Pardon Attorney. Neither the White House nor the Justice Department immediately responded. Trump previously pardoned another crypto tycoon, Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, who was convicted of violating US money-laundering laws.
Bankman-Fried, once a multibillionaire and key figure in the crypto industry before FTX’s spectacular collapse in 2022, was found guilty on seven felony charges by a federal jury in Manhattan in 2023. Prosecutors said he stole $8 billion from FTX customers to cover losses at his hedge fund, Alameda Research, calling it a “fraud of epic proportions.”
At trial, Bankman-Fried admitted making mistakes but denied stealing funds. On appeal, his lawyers argued that Judge Lewis Kaplan improperly prevented him from introducing evidence that FTX had enough funds for withdrawals. The appeals court disagreed, noting that fraud occurs when a defendant tricks someone into handing over money, even if intending to eventually repay.
Bankman-Fried is held at a low-security federal prison near Santa Barbara, California. He is eligible for release in 2044.
