US Senators Oppose Pardon for Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried

FTX collapsed in November 2022 after revelations that customer assets had been diverted to affiliated trading firm Alameda Research, triggering one of the crypto industry’s largest fraud cases. A federal jury convicted founder Sam Bankman-Fried, known as SBF, on seven criminal counts in November 2023, a verdict that intensified scrutiny of digital-asset governance, custody practices and regulation.

The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York rejected Bankman-Fried’s appeal, leaving intact the 25-year prison term and $11 billion forfeiture order imposed on March 28, 2024. The court said transferring customer money to Alameda without authorization was itself fraudulent, dismissing his contention that the funds were only borrowed temporarily and that he intended to repay them.

FTX, once one of the world's three largest cryptocurrency exchanges, collapsed into bankruptcy in November 2022, leaving customers with losses of more than $8 billion. Founder Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced by a U.S. court in March 2024 to 25 years in prison for multiple counts of financial fraud. One of the largest financial fraud cases in U.S. history, it has become a major turning point for global digital-asset regulation and investor protection.

The U.S. Senate unanimously adopted Resolution 772, or S.Res.772, on July 15, 2026, strongly opposing any presidential pardon or sentence commutation for Bankman-Fried. The resolution's passage without objection reflects the seriousness with which lawmakers from both parties view the case. He is currently not due for release before 2044, and former President Donald Trump has publicly said he has no intention of granting clemency.

The United States marked the 250th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 2026, prompting the White House to discuss a “250 years, 250 pardons” plan. The proposal could affect the Justice Department's pardon process and the boundaries of criminal liability for developers of crypto privacy tools. Trump had previously pardoned Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, known as CZ, and Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht.

The Atlantic reported on June 29 that Washington intermediaries were charging $1 million to $2 million to help people secure a place on the list. The founders of Samourai Wallet and Tornado Cash are seeking pardons. Trump pardoned 11 people on July 3, but the White House has yet to release a list of 250 names. He has separately ruled out pardoning FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, known as SBF.

FTX collapsed in November 2022, leaving customers with losses of more than $8 billion. Founder Sam Bankman-Fried, or SBF, was convicted by a federal jury in the Southern District of New York on November 2, 2023, on seven fraud and conspiracy counts. On March 28, 2024, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison and ordered to forfeit $11 billion. The case severely damaged trust in the crypto market, making any comeback proposal from him particularly sensitive.

On June 12, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit rejected SBF’s appeal, upholding his conviction and 25-year sentence. According to a New York Magazine interview conducted in prison, he is still devising a new token economic model, but has no product, technology or issuance timetable. On June 17, Republican Senator Cynthia Lummis and Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego introduced a nonbinding resolution calling on Trump not to pardon SBF or commute his sentence.

FTX filed for bankruptcy in November 2022, revealing that customer funds had been misappropriated to cover a shortfall at affiliated trading firm Alameda Research. A New York jury convicted founder Sam Bankman-Fried on seven fraud and conspiracy charges in November 2023. In March 2024, the court sentenced him to 25 years in prison and ordered the forfeiture of $11 billion in assets.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit rejected SBF's appeal on July 17, 2026, upholding his conviction and 25-year sentence. The panel found unpersuasive his argument that the trial court had unfairly restricted the defense's presentation of evidence. Even if some rulings were open to question, the prosecution's evidence tracing the flow of funds and its witness testimony were still overwhelmingly strong and provided no basis to overturn the judgment.

FTX filed for bankruptcy in November 2022. Its founder, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), was convicted in November 2023 of fraud charges including the misuse of customer funds. On March 28, 2024, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison and ordered to forfeit more than $11 billion. Trump’s pardons of several crypto-industry figures have drawn attention to SBF’s political overtures.

On March 21, 2026, SBF used an approved proxy-posting arrangement from prison to endorse Trump’s strikes on Iran, saying the operation had significantly weakened Iran’s military. US Justice Department records showed on June 8 that he had formally applied for a presidential pardon in 2026, though the filing date was not disclosed. Trump said in January that he did not intend to pardon SBF, and a federal appeals court upheld his conviction and 25-year sentence on June 12.

Crypto exchange FTX filed for bankruptcy in November 2022. Prosecutors accused founder and former chief executive Sam Bankman-Fried, or SBF, of misappropriating about $8 billion in customer funds to finance trading and investments by Alameda Research. A New York jury convicted him in November 2023 on seven fraud and conspiracy counts, and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York sentenced him to 25 years in prison on March 28, 2024.

SBF moved for a new trial on February 5, 2026, under Rule 33 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, arguing that a new witness could support his claim that FTX was solvent at the time. Judge Lewis Kaplan ordered the U.S. government on February 25 to respond by March 11. SBF sought to withdraw the motion and replace the judge on April 22, but Kaplan denied it on April 28, finding that the evidence was not newly discovered and that the claims contradicted the case record.