FTX Bankman-Fried appeal

Bankman-Fried's Appeal Claims Prosecutorial Bias and Presumption of Guilt

Jan 9, 2026

1 min read

Bankman-Fried's Appeal Claims Prosecutorial Bias and Presumption of Guilt — ChatGPT

Sam Bankman-Fried, founder of bankrupt crypto exchange FTX, appeared before a three-judge panel of the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York on 4 November, where his defence team sought to overturn his conviction on seven counts of fraud and conspiracy and his 25-year prison sentence, citing trial errors and the denial of a fair defence.

The defence advanced two central arguments: that Judge Lewis Kaplan improperly excluded evidence supporting FTX's solvency, and that he prevented the defence from arguing Bankman-Fried had acted on legal advice. Prosecutors countered that the misappropriation of $8 billion in customer funds was proven by testimony from three of four insiders and extensive FTX documentation. The panel appeared sceptical of the defence's position, with Circuit Judge Maria Araujo Kahn questioning whether conceding the sufficiency of evidence undermined the claim that excluded evidence was prejudicial. From prison, Bankman-Fried has given interviews to the New York Sun and appeared on the Tucker Carlson Show, adopting a notably conservative posture, expressing support for Trump, and citing shared grievances about Judge Kaplan. According to The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, Bankman-Fried's parents — both Stanford law professors — have consulted an attorney from Trump's 2016 campaign about the possibility of a presidential pardon.

The outcome of the appeal remains uncertain, with the panel setting no deadline for its ruling. Bankman-Fried is serving his sentence at a low-security prison near Los Angeles with an earliest release date of October 2044, while the crypto industry remains divided on the pardon question — some experts argue that clemency for convicted offenders would undermine the sector's long-term credibility.

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