Sam Bankman-Fried has formally filed a clemency petition with the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of the Pardon Attorney, requesting a presidential pardon from President Donald Trump. The move comes as the FTX founder serves a 25-year prison sentence for fraud and conspiracy — and despite Trump saying he won't pardon him.
A petition filed from prison
Bankman-Fried gave his first on-record media interview from prison to FOX Business, stating he wants a pardon from Trump. The pardon application is listed as 'pardon after completion of sentence' on the DOJ clemency case status portal. That means the petition won't be considered until after his sentence is served — a process that could take decades.
Why he thinks he deserves a pardon
Bankman-Fried denies stealing customer funds, claiming customers have been repaid 170% due to cryptocurrency market recovery during the bankruptcy. But prosecutors showed he misused billions in customer deposits for Alameda Research, political donations, and real estate purchases. FTX customers lost $8 billion, equity investors lost $1.7 billion, and Alameda Research lenders lost $1.3 billion. Judge Lewis Kaplan ordered $11 billion in forfeiture.
Trump's track record on crypto pardons
Trump has pardoned other crypto figures: Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht, former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, and BitMEX co-founders. That record likely encouraged Bankman-Fried to try. But Trump hasn't budged on this one. He said publicly he will not pardon Sam Bankman-Fried.
What the petition actually says
The DOJ portal lists Bankman-Fried's application as a 'pardon after completion of sentence', which is essentially a placeholder until his term ends. In the meantime, Bankman-Fried has made public statements praising Trump's policies — striking Iran, appointing Paul Atkins to the SEC, falling gasoline prices. Unclear if that helps or hurts.
The FTX collapse and its aftermath
The FTX collapse began in November 2022 after a CoinDesk report on balance sheet concerns linking FTX to Alameda Research. Key insiders Caroline Ellison and Gary Wang testified against Bankman-Fried after pleading guilty and cooperating with prosecutors. He was convicted on seven criminal counts in November 2023.
For now, the petition sits in bureaucratic limbo. Unless Trump changes his mind — and he's shown no sign of that — Bankman-Fried will serve his 25 years. The DOJ listing is more symbolic than substantive, but it's a move that keeps the story alive.
