Two years after being found guilty of one of the biggest financial scandals of the decade, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) is refusing to give up. The former CEO of FTX, now behind bars, is back in front of the American justice system trying to obtain a new trial, a battle that experts consider almost lost from the start.
SBF: a heavy verdict, a desperate defense
In November 2023, a New York jury found SBF guilty of the seven charges against him: massive fraud against FTX’s clients, investors, and lenders. A historic verdict in a case that prosecutors described as the ‘largest financial fraud since Madoff.’ The result: 25 years in prison for the former crypto golden boy.
But since last September, SBF’s defense is holding on to a slim hope. They accuse Judge Lewis Kaplan of having deprived their client of a fair trial, notably by preventing certain evidence related to his ‘legal counsel’ from being presented. In essence, SBF argues that he always acted in good faith, following the advice of his lawyers within the company.
The case is now in the hands of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York, which must decide if these arguments warrant a retrial.
‘An uphill battle’ for the defense
For attorney and former federal prosecutor Samson Enzer, the fight seems almost impossible. According to him, the most interesting point will be whether the judges consider the limitation of evidence regarding the defense’s ‘counsel presence’ as a significant judicial error or a minor detail.
Howard Fischer, former SEC executive and now partner at Moses & Singer LLP, shares the same view. ‘Unless there are multiple errors depriving the accused of a fair trial, appellate courts almost always uphold the judge’s conduct.’
In other words, without a major flaw in the procedure, SBF’s hope remains minimal.
An expected outcome… but a political card to play
The Court of Appeals’ verdict is not expected for several months. In the meantime, attention is turning to another avenue: presidential pardon. Sam Bankman-Fried’s parents, Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried, are actively advocating for an intervention by President Trump, in a context where several figures in the crypto ecosystem have recently received pardons.
But SBF’s political past is working against him: in 2020, he donated over 5 million dollars to Joe Biden’s campaign to counter Trump. This means that the chances of a presidential pardon seem as slim as those of a new trial.
The final stand
Despite this, SBF continues to plead his case. In a recent lengthy message, he claims that Alameda Research and FTX ‘have never been insolvent’ and that all clients could have been reimbursed after the 2022 liquidity crisis.
Another statement in a communication strategy bordering on persistence. But for a man sentenced to spend two decades behind bars, every word, every request, every appeal can still carry some weight in the balance.
