U.S. President Donald Trump ruled out the possibility of pardoning Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), the founder of the FTX exchange, who is serving a 25-year sentence for fraud. The politician made the remarks in an interview with The New York Times.
The 'blacklist' also includes former Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, music producer Sean 'Diddy' Combs, and former New Jersey senator Robert Menendez.
SBF has been in custody since August 2023 — when a federal judge rejected his request for release on bail before the criminal trial. In March 2024, the cryptocurrency entrepreneur was sentenced to 25 years in prison after being found guilty on seven counts.
Media reports have surfaced that Bankman-Fried's parents are exploring possibilities for obtaining his pardon. Journalists from the Wall Street Journal reported on the preparation of strategic memorandums and the engagement of external lawyers. However, they found no direct contacts with Trump's campaign team.
Conservative activist Laura Lumer claimed there exists a 'large-scale and well-funded' campaign aimed at convincing the U.S. president to pardon the FTX founder. However, there has been no official confirmation.
The U.S. Department of Justice also did not include SBF in the list of candidates for pardon in 2025.
Despite Trump's release of Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht and former Binance chief Changpeng Zhao, the market remains skeptical in Bankman-Fried's case. The community estimates the probability of his release before 2027 at only 5%.
Bankman-Fried's situation is complicated by his political past: the FTX founder was one of the key donors to the Democratic Party and personally to Joe Biden.
Prospects for appeal
Bankman-Fried still has a chance to challenge the verdict. The appellate court hearings took place in November, but the final document has not yet been entered into the registry. In the event of a denial, the defense will have only one remaining option — appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The sentencing timelines for other individuals involved in the FTX collapse are nearing their end. Caroline Ellison, sentenced to two years in prison, will be released on January 21. In October, she was transferred from a federal facility in Connecticut to the New York office of the Reentry Administration — a standard procedure in preparation for release.
We remind you that at the end of October, Bankman-Fried claimed that FTX was solvent at the time of the collapse. According to him, its assets amounted to $25 billion, and its liabilities were $13 billion.
