Jailed FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried is aligning himself with the political right after his downfall, in an apparent bid for a presidential pardon.
Bankman-Fried voiced frustrations with both the Biden administration and the judicial system that convicted him, in an interview with the New York Sun.
The FTX co-founder’s rhetoric has taken a sharp turn toward support for U.S. President Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk while serving a 25-year sentence at the Brooklyn prison for defrauding customers of billions of dollars.
“I became really frustrated and disappointed with what I saw of Biden’s administration,” Bankman-Fried said during the 45-minute phone call.
His statement marks a sharp departure from his past as a major Democratic donor, once among the largest backers in the 2020 election cycle.
Bankman-Fried also praised Musk’s “chainsaw approach” to cutting through federal bureaucracy, pointing to the need for an overhaul of inefficient systems.
“Some things actually do need more than a 10% cut,” he said. “They need a 30, 50, 70% [cut], but of course they need to be rebuilt in the right way.”
Bankman-Fried’s comments come as his parents reportedly seek a presidential pardon for their son.
The disgraced crypto mogul’s parents have been in talks with individuals close to Trump’s inner circle to explore the possibility of clemency, Bloomberg reported, citing anonymous sources.
“I’ve been working with Republicans a lot more than had been previously thought,” Bankman-Fried said, hinting that his connections within conservative circles may help in securing a pardon.
Bankman-Fried’s bid for clemency recalls the case of Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht, who was sentenced to life for running the dark web marketplace.
Ulbricht was promised clemency by Trump during his election campaign, and was subsequently granted a pardon after Trump assumed office.
The collapse of FTX
Bankman-Fried’s fall from grace was as rapid as it was public.
Once the head of FTX, a crypto exchange valued at $32 billion, his empire collapsed in November 2022 amid allegations of fraud, embezzlement, and misuse of customer funds.
The case became one of the largest financial scandals in the crypto industry’s short history, with Bankman-Fried’s arrest and subsequent trial drawing widespread attention.
In 2023, a jury found him guilty on seven counts, including wire fraud and securities fraud, resulting in a 25-year sentence.
Bankman-Fried, who was convicted of fraud in connection with the collapse of FTX, has maintained that, “I don’t think anyone was guilty.”
He also echoed familiar talking points from Trump, criticizing the “politicization” of the Department of Justice (DOJ) and lamenting the handling of his case.
His comments about Judge Kaplan, who presided over both Bankman-Fried’s trial and a case against Trump involving accusations of sexual abuse, reveal an attempt to draw parallels between his legal battle and Trump’s.
Both, he argued, were victims of a biased justice system driven by political motivations.
In a Wednesday statement, Trump announced that he had instructed the Justice Department to “fire all remaining ‘Biden-era’ U.S. Attorneys,” seeking to eliminate what he perceives as lingering political appointees from the previous administration.
Daily Debrief Newsletter
Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.
