Judge Keeps FTX Fraud Conviction in Place
A federal judge has rejected Sam Bankman-Fried’s request for a new trial, adding another major setback for the former FTX CEO.
U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan ruled that Bankman-Fried did not provide a strong legal reason to reopen the case. As a result, his 25-year prison sentence remains in place.
Bankman-Fried was convicted in 2023 on seven criminal counts, including fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering. Prosecutors said he misused billions of dollars in FTX customer funds and sent them to Alameda Research, his linked trading firm.
The collapse of FTX in November 2022 shocked the crypto market. It also became one of the biggest scandals in digital asset history.
Bankman-Fried’s Witness Argument Fails
Bankman-Fried argued that additional witnesses could support his defense. He claimed they would show that FTX was not insolvent. He also pointed to bankruptcy recoveries and said customers were later compensated.
However, Judge Kaplan rejected that position. He said the proposed witnesses were not truly new because Bankman-Fried knew about them before the trial.
The judge also said there was no proof that these witnesses would support Bankman-Fried’s larger claims about FTX’s finances or customer repayment.
Key points from the ruling include:
- The court found no valid basis for a new trial.
- The conviction and 25-year sentence remain unchanged.
- The judge rejected the argument about newly available witnesses.
- Later bankruptcy recoveries did not change the criminal verdict.
Appeals Remain His Main Legal Path
Bankman-Fried has continued to fight his conviction after sentencing. Recent legal filings show that he withdrew a separate request for a new trial without prejudice. That move may allow him to raise some arguments again later.
For crypto investors and regulators, the ruling strengthens the government’s major win in the FTX fraud case. It also sends a clear message to the crypto industry.
Even if creditors recover money through bankruptcy, that does not erase fraud found by a jury. Bankman-Fried’s next major option is the appeals process, but overturning a federal fraud conviction remains difficult.
