Sam Bankman-Fried has officially filed for a pardon from President Trump, according to the Justice Department's Pardon Attorney Office website. He is seeking to overturn his 25-year prison sentence.
Bankman-Fried was convicted on fraud and money laundering charges in 2024. Trump has already pardoned hundreds of people during his second term. An NBC News analysis found that more than half of his individual pardons went to people convicted of financial crimes like money laundering, bank fraud, and wire fraud.
Trump has shown a clear preference for rewarding major donors with clemency. The pardon application was first reported by Bloomberg News. Most recipients of Trump's clemency did not file official paperwork. Bankman-Fried doing so by the book suggests either genuine hope or desperation.
Bankman-Fried's collapse at FTX left investors and employees with substantial losses. A presidential pardon would represent an extraordinary reversal for one of the tech sector's most discredited figures.
