Sam Bankman-Fried, the former crypto mogul serving a 25-year sentence for the collapse of FTX, said he would “absolutely” accept a pardon from President Donald Trump. But Trump told The New York Times in January he has no intention of granting one, and Bankman-Fried has not appeared on any list of people under consideration for clemency.
Bankman-Fried's pardon hopes
Speaking from prison, Bankman-Fried made the comment to a reporter, though he did not elaborate on any direct outreach to the White House. The statement came as Trump’s second term has already seen more than 1,400 pardons and commutations — the vast majority tied to January 6 defendants. Bankman-Fried’s name is not among them, and his legal team has not publicly pushed for a pardon.
Avenatti's inside view
Michael Avenatti, the convicted felon and former attorney who shared a prison unit with Bankman-Fried, offered a rare window into the disgraced FTX founder’s mindset. Avenatti, serving time for extortion and fraud, said Bankman-Fried never admitted any wrongdoing during their time together. He described Bankman-Fried as a technology visionary with genuine intellectual gifts but sharply criticized his judgment, particularly the failure to hire seasoned executives.
“If he had brought in an experienced operator like Eric Schmidt — the way Google did — FTX might still be standing,” Avenatti argued. “He could be worth close to $100 billion today.” Avenatti’s claim is untestable but underscores the what-if narrative that clings to the FTX saga.
Trump's pardon record and SBF's absence
Trump has granted clemency at a pace that far exceeds his first term, but the list remains heavily skewed toward January 6 participants. Bankman-Fried’s case — centered on the commingling of customer funds, which he continues to dispute — does not fit the political profile that has defined Trump’s pardon decisions. Bankman-Fried has maintained that FTX customers were ultimately repaid, a claim critics reject as a distortion of the massive losses and bankruptcy proceedings.
The 25-year sentence handed down by a federal judge in New York is one of the longest for financial fraud in recent memory. Bankman-Fried has appealed, but no ruling has been issued. A pardon from Trump would short-circuit the legal process, but Trump’s January statement to the Times suggests the door is firmly closed.
For now, Bankman-Fried remains in prison, his public remarks about a pardon a long shot that no one in the White House appears to be considering.
