With 19 years remaining for Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried in prison, the former FTX CEO’s legal team will present arguments in the appellate court as to why a panel of judges should consider overturning his conviction or sentence.
On Tuesday, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit will hear oral arguments from SBF’s lawyers. Though the details of the appeal were unclear at the time of publication, the former FTX CEO’s legal team said in its initial appeals filing from September 2024 that it intended to argue SBF was “never presumed innocent,” claiming that it was not allowed to present information to the court regarding the crypto exchange’s solvency.
“From day one, the prevailing narrative—initially spun by the lawyers who took over FTX, quickly adopted by their contacts at the US Attorney’s Office— was that Bankman-Fried had stolen billions of dollars of customer funds, driven FTX to insolvency, and caused billions in losses,” said the September 2024 appeal. “Now, nearly two years later, a very different picture is emerging—one confirming FTX was never insolvent, and in fact had assets worth billions to repay its customers. But the jury at Bankman-Fried’s trial never got to see that picture.”
Following the collapse of FTX in November 2022, US authorities extradited Bankman-Fried from the Bahamas to face charges, including money laundering and fraud. A jury convicted the former CEO on seven felony counts in November 2023, and a judge sentenced him to 25 years in prison in March 2024.
The case involving the high-profile cryptocurrency executive drew attention from many in the industry, as well as lawmakers, since SBF had contributed millions of dollars to politicians through his companies. The appeals court will decide whether to grant Bankman-Fried a new trial or affirm his conviction in New York.
Potential for Presidential Pardon
Following his conviction and sentencing hearing, Bankman-Fried appeared to campaign to more align himself with Republicans and right-leaning politicians, in an attempt to draw positive attention from US President Donald Trump.
Trump has signaled a willingness to pardon or commute the sentences of cryptocurrency figures who support him or who have business relationships with members of his family.
In January, he pardoned Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht, who had been sentenced to life in prison, reportedly as part of an appeal to libertarian voters in the 2024 election.
Most recently, the president pardoned former Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, who served four months in prison in 2024 after pleading guilty to violating the US Bank Secrecy Act. The act increased speculation among many crypto users that SBF could be next, but as of Tuesday, the White House had not announced any pardon.