Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the bankrupt crypto exchange FTX, lost his appeal to overturn his fraud conviction and 25-year prison sentence, leaving a Trump pardon bid as one of his few remaining paths out.
A three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, a federal appeals court in Manhattan, unanimously rejected Bankman-Fried's challenge on Friday, Reuters reported Friday, June 12.
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The court said prosecutors' evidence against Bankman-Fried was, "conservatively stated, robust."
- Bankman-Fried, the founder of collapsed crypto exchange FTX, was convicted by a federal jury in Manhattan in 2023 on seven felony charges tied to the exchange's 2022 implosion.
- Prosecutors said he stole $8 billion from FTX customers to cover losses at Alameda Research, his crypto-focused hedge fund, in what they called a "fraud of epic proportions."
Circuit Judge Barrington Parker wrote that Bankman-Fried was telling customers, investors and regulators that FTX customer funds were safe while he was using the exchange as "his own personal piggy bank" for real estate, political contributions and investments.
What the appeal argued
Bankman-Fried had pleaded not guilty to two fraud counts and five conspiracy counts. At trial, he admitted making mistakes while running FTX, but said he never stole funds.
His appeal argued that U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan, the trial judge, wrongly blocked evidence that Bankman-Fried said would have supported his belief that FTX had enough money to cover withdrawals.
But the appeals court rejected that argument. Parker wrote that FTX customers "were defrauded as soon as Bankman-Fried transferred their money to Alameda," even if he believed he could later return the money.
Bankman-Fried's lawyers can still ask the full 2nd Circuit to rehear the case or ask the U.S. Supreme Court to take it up.
- Bankman-Fried is also seeking a pardon from President Donald Trump, according to the Justice Department's Office of the Pardon Attorney.
- The former crypto billionaire is being held at a low-security federal prison near Santa Barbara, California. He is eligible for release in 2044.