Will FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried Get an Early Exit from Jail with Presidential Pardon?

BeInCrypto reported earlier that there were significant concerns about Sam Bankman-Fried, the former FTX founder getting an early release from prison through Biden’s outgoing presidential pardon.

Tweets from influential figures like Elon Musk suggest that it’s a significant possibility. But what are the facts for such considerations? How likely is the FTX founder to leave prison less than a year after his conviction? 

Sam Bankman-Fried Donated Over $5 Million to Biden’s Campaign

Back in 2020, when FTX’s success was at its peak, Sam Bankman-Fried donated $5.2 million to pro-Biden super PACs during the election. He was the second largest individual donor for the Democratic party after Michael Bloomberg.

Historically, political donors and their affiliates have received significant advantages in terms of convictions and pardon considerations. Take Marc Rich, for example. The infamous oil trader evaded at least $50 million in tax back in 2021.However, Rich was pardoned by Clinton on his last day in office. The pardon was controversial because Rich’s ex-wife Denise was a major Democratic donor. She contributed significantly to Clinton’s presidential library and the Democratic National Committee. 

Similarly. Paul Pogue, another convicted tax fraud, was pardoned by Donald Trump in 2020. Reports suggested that this was due to Pogue’s family donating over $200,000 to Trump’s campaign.

“Sam Bankman-Fried used millions of stolen customer funds to fund political campaigns. SBF gave almost entirely to Democrats (98%) making him the second largest Dem donor. There is now a 12% chance Biden will pardon him,” Predictions market Kalshi posted on X (formerly Twitter).

So, given the historical controversy of political donors being more likely to receive clemency, it wouldn’t be too far-fetched to assume that Sam Bankman-Fried might be on President Biden’s radar. 

Also, President Biden already pardoned Michael Conahan last week. Conahan was sentenced to 17 years because of the infamous ‘“kids-for-cash” scandal. He accepted bribes from private juvenile detention centers in exchange for sentencing children to those facilities, often for minor offenses.

It’s a tangible proof that Biden might not shy away from providing clemency to major offenders. 

The FTX Founder’s Campaign Finance Violation Charges were Dropped

One of the most controversial aspects of Bankman-Fried’s trial was the government’s omission of his campaign finance-related charges. 

Originally, he faced eight criminal charges, including conspiracy to defraud the United States and violate campaign finance laws. However, this campaign finance charge was dropped in July 2023.

The charges were dropped initially due to a treaty obligation with the Bahamas, where Bankman-Fried was extradited. Essentially, the Bahamian government did not approve of including this specific charge in the extradition request. 

However, the prosecution claimed to have a separate trial focusing on these charges.  This second trial was intended to address the dropped campaign finance charge and other counts related to bribery and operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business. 

However, in December 2023, prosecutors announced they would not pursue a second trial as the evidence would largely duplicate what was already presented in the first trial.

A Controversial 25-year Sentence

Earlier this year, Sam Bankman-Fried received a 25-year sentence on multiple charges of wire fraud and money laundering. However, many considered it lenient, given the scale and impact of his crimes. 

The FTX collapse cost customers and creditors over $16 billion, and it wiped out more than $100 billion from the market due to the crypto winter. So, being one of the largest financial scandals in US history, many considered this sentencing to be lenient. 

“Bankman-Fried and his associates want a pardon or commutation in return for campaign contributions they stole from FTX investors. Any president who agrees to this should be impeached for bribery,” wrote popular lawyer Richard W. Painter.

Prosecutors initially sought a 50-year sentence, arguing that Bankman-Fried’s crimes were “historic” in their scope and severity. They emphasized the massive financial losses suffered by FTX customers and the erosion of public trust in the cryptocurrency market. 

Also, Caroline Ellison, who actively received the customer funds from FTX and Bankman-Friend, only received a 2-year sentence due to her cooperation with the prosecutors. Most surprisingly, Gary Wang, who wrote backdoor code that provided unlimited credit to Alameda, avoided jail time entirely.Given these facts and critics considering the convictions to be too lenient, there is a notable expectation in the crypto industry that Sam Bankman-Fried might be in contention for clemency.However, it’s important to note that the connection between donations and pardons isn’t always clear-cut. Presidents may have other reasons for granting clemency, and it’s difficult to prove definitively that donations were the sole or primary motivating factor. 

Yet, past cases raise ethical concerns about the potential for wealthy individuals to buy their way out of legal trouble through political contributions.