FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried insists he is innocent, wants Trump pardon
Susan Li reports on FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried speaking from prison, found guilty of major financial schemes. Susan Li’s exclusive interview reveals SBF wants a White House pardon and defends himself, claiming customers were repaid.
Sam Bankman-Fried, the former cryptocurrency billionaire serving a 25-year sentence for fraud tied to the 2022 collapse of his FTX exchange, says he would welcome a pardon from President Donald Trump — but insists he has not lobbied the White House for one.
“It would be obviously, you know, ultimately up to the president, not up to me,” Bankman-Fried told FOX Business in an exclusive interview from prison. Asked directly whether he wanted a pardon, he didn’t hesitate: “Absolutely.”
The FTX founder said he has not personally been in contact with the White House or anyone connected to the president. Asked whether his parents or others had reached out on his behalf, he said, “I can’t speak for them.”
FOX Business has reviewed a pardon application filed on Bankman-Fried’s behalf. As it stands, the application seeks clemency only after he finishes serving his sentence.
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Sam Bankman-Fried leaves Federal Court in New York, on Jan. 3, 2023. The former cryptocurrency billionaire says he would welcome a pardon from President Trump. (Fatih Aktas/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images / Getty Images)
The White House, asked for comment, directed FOX Business back to the president’s previous statements that he was not considering a pardon for Bankman-Fried.
‘I didn’t steal user funds’
More than three years after his arrest, Bankman-Fried continues to insist he is innocent. He is appealing his conviction, with a decision pending before the Second Circuit Court of Appeals.
“I didn’t steal user funds,” he said. “Customers have been repaid now 170% or so on their deposits. It’s one of the very few cases where the platform was over-collateralized, where customers were more than made whole. And yet there was, you know, not just a criminal investigation, but a prosecution. And, you know, dozens of years of sentence.”
Those assertions require context. Bankman-Fried was convicted in 2023 on seven counts — including wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering — for diverting billions of dollars in FTX customer funds, and was sentenced to 25 years in 2024.
Sam Bankman-Fried leaves Federal Court in New York City on Thursday, December 22, 2022. The former CEO of FTX and Alameda is serving a 25-year sentence for fraud. (Charles Guerin/Abaca for Fox News Digital / Fox News)
The FTX bankruptcy estate has said customers are being repaid in full, with reported recoveries of roughly 118% and higher for some classes of claims. But those repayments were calculated using cryptocurrency prices from November 2022, when the market was near its…
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