TLDR
- Prosecutors have a March 11 deadline to respond to Sam Bankman-Fried’s motion seeking a new criminal trial
- The disgraced FTX founder is serving 25 years after conviction on seven felony fraud counts in 2023
- From prison, SBF has deployed social media posts supporting Trump, widely viewed as a pardon-seeking tactic
- His endorsement of crypto’s Clarity Act legislation prompted sharp rebukes from both Senators Cynthia Lummis and Elizabeth Warren
- Trump administration officials have repeatedly indicated no clemency is forthcoming for Bankman-Fried
Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), the fallen cryptocurrency executive responsible for FTX’s catastrophic collapse, finds himself fighting an uphill battle across several legal and political arenas — with minimal positive results thus far.
US District Court Judge Lewis Kaplan for the Southern District of New York has set a March 11 deadline requiring federal prosecutors to file their opposition to SBF’s request for a new criminal trial. This timeline was established via a court document filed Wednesday.
After his 2023 conviction on seven felony counts, SBF was handed a 25-year prison term in March 2024. The criminal charges arose from his role in orchestrating an extensive fraud scheme that diverted billions of dollars from FTX customer deposits through Alameda Research, his associated trading firm.
His defense attorneys have contested both the conviction itself and the prison sentence imposed. As of Thursday, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has not yet ruled on these challenges.
The new trial motion, filed this month, operates as a distinct legal avenue separate from the ongoing appellate process. SBF’s lawyers contend that additional witness testimony would strengthen his case.
While serving his sentence, SBF has continued posting on social media through third parties. His X account has published numerous messages praising President Donald Trump while criticizing what he describes as “political bias” affecting his criminal case.
He has also voiced support for the Clarity Act, proposed cryptocurrency regulatory legislation currently under congressional consideration. In these posts, SBF portrayed the legislation’s potential enactment as a win for the Trump administration.
The tactic quickly backfired spectacularly. Republican Senator Cynthia Lummis, a prominent advocate for cryptocurrency regulation, responded sharply on X. “Someone’s looking for a pardon and doesn’t realize the Clarity Act would have you locked up for much longer than 25 years,” the senator posted.
Lummis made a stark contrast between her present legislative efforts and the bill SBF reportedly tried to influence through political donations in 2022. “We do not need — nor want — your support,” she declared.
Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren likewise spurned SBF’s backing. She described him as “a fraudster who stole at least $8 billion from customers” and suggested his Clarity Act endorsement should “set off alarm bells.”
The Clarity Act’s chances of passage have dropped roughly 16% during the past week, according to prediction market Polymarket’s data. The legislation now carries a 69% probability of enactment before the year concludes.
SBF’s chances of securing a presidential pardon appear similarly dim. White House spokespeople have repeatedly clarified that Trump is not considering such action, including in statements to the New York Times in January and Fortune magazine this Tuesday.
Although Trump has extended clemency to other crypto industry players — including former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao and Silk Road marketplace creator Ross Ulbricht — SBF has not benefited from similar treatment.
Caroline Ellison, former Alameda leader who testified against SBF at trial, was released from custody in January after completing 440 days. Ryan Salame, who held the position of co-CEO at FTX Digital Markets, is currently serving a sentence exceeding seven years.
As of this writing, SBF’s appeal continues pending resolution, with prosecutors facing the March 11 deadline to address his motion for a new trial.
