SBF Submits Presidential Pardon Request to Trump White House

Sam Bankman-Fried, the convicted founder of defunct crypto exchange FTX, has formally submitted a request for a presidential pardon to the Trump White House, his attorney told CNBC and Fox Business on Monday. The filing was made with the Justice Department's Office of the Pardon Attorney, the unit that reviews clemency applications. It is the clearest move Bankman-Fried has taken toward seeking clemency since he was sentenced. The Trump administration has not publicly commented on the petition. FTT token swings FTX's FTT token moved sharply Monday afternoon. CoinGecko data show FTT changing hands around $0.234 before jumping to $0.3554 within an hour, a gain of about 52%. By Tuesday morning, it had eased to roughly $0.3211, still up about 32% over the past 24 hours. FTT's fully diluted valuation stands at $105.6 million, according to CoinGecko. The token remains 99.6% below its September 2021 peak of $84.18. Case background and petition details Bankman-Fried, 32, is serving a 25-year federal prison sentence after being convicted in November 2023 on seven counts of fraud and conspiracy. A separate sentencing tied to related charges was completed in March 2024. Petitions submitted through the Office of the Pardon Attorney typically outline reasons for clemency, such as claims of legal overreach, prosecutorial misconduct, excessive sentencing, or evidence of rehabilitation. The specific arguments in Bankman-Fried's filing have not been made public. Bankman-Fried has continued to deny wrongdoing since his December 2022 arrest. In a Fox Business prison interview that aired Monday, he said he is pursuing a pardon and repeated that he does not believe he committed the crimes that led to his conviction. A full transcript of the interview has not been independently released. Trump's stated view President Donald Trump has previously said publicly that he does not plan to pardon Bankman-Fried. Before FTX collapsed in November 2022, Bankman-Fried was one of the largest donors to Democratic political causes. Trump and other Republican officials have repeatedly pointed to that donation record in public remarks about the case. How clemency requests typically move Presidential clemency requests are not filed in federal court. The Office of the Pardon Attorney receives thousands of petitions each year, and presidential action on applications routed through the office is uncommon. Many high-profile clemency grants are pursued through direct outreach to the White House Counsel's office. It has not been confirmed whether Bankman-Fried's request was handled solely through the pardon office, the White House Counsel, or both. The FTX criminal case remains in the Southern District of New York. As of this writing, the public docket shows no motion for a new trial, appeal, or other post-conviction proceeding.