DeutschJust a few years ago, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) was seen as a wunderkind of the crypto scene. Today, the once-celebrated founder of the FTX trading platform is in prison—sentenced to 25 years for fraud. But the case apparently isn’t over yet. The 33-year-old is now trying to have the proceedings reopened. A new trial is meant to overturn his sentence—or at least reduce it.
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According to US media reports, the motion was filed through his mother, while SBF himself has so far been driving the push. Two former FTX executives who didn’t testify in the original trial could now exonerate him, the argument goes. The defense reportedly hopes to plant fresh doubt on the central question: was it deliberate fraud, or the collapse of an overstretched company in a crisis?
FTX drama continues: SBF suddenly fights for a new trial
The collapse of FTX at the end of 2022 shook the crypto industry worldwide. The exchange was among the largest marketplaces for digital assets like Bitcoin. Within a few days, the company went from a multi-billion-dollar giant to a bankruptcy case. SBF was arrested in the Bahamas and later extradited to the US. For many investors, the collapse meant losing large parts of their assets.
At the heart of the charges was a classic allegation: misappropriating customer funds. Alongside FTX, SBF also controlled the hedge fund Alameda Research. It made risky trades and used funds from FTX to do so. Collateral should have been posted. But according to the prosecution, the software contained a special rule that allowed Alameda to rack up virtually unlimited debt. When several bets failed, a multi-billion-dollar hole emerged.
SBF rejects this portrayal. FTX wasn’t insolvent, he says—it was merely suffering from a liquidity crunch. His central claim is that the company could have paid out investors if it had been given more time. Even in the ongoing appeals process, his lawyers argue that crucial information was withheld from the jury.
Will Bankman-Fried be pardoned by US President Trump?
The attempt to challenge the verdict feels like a last fight for his legacy. Because the case has long stood for more than just a failed entrepreneur. For many observers, it symbolizes the moment the crypto boom lost its innocence. SBF’s rise and fall became a cautionary tale for an industry that for a long time grew faster than its control mechanisms. The case also drew extra attention after reports that those around the convicted man floated the idea of a pardon by US President Donald Trump.
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However, Trump said in an interview with the New York Times that he was not planning such a pardon. Whether a new trial will actually happen remains unclear. The only sure thing is: the name SBF won’t disappear from the headlines anytime soon. The crypto industry has evolved since the FTX debacle, but the legal fallout continues. And with every new motion, the memory returns of a crash that showed how thin the line between vision and loss of control can be. (mck)
