Two US lawmakers on opposite sides of the political aisle are backing a resolution that \u201cunder no circumstances should Samuel [SBF] Bankman-Fried receive executive clemency, including a pardon or commutation.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a resolution to be introduced Wednesday, Republican Senator Cynthia Lummis and Democratic Senator Rub\u00e9n Gallego warned<\/a> that should US President Donald Trump grant SBF\u2019s request for a pardon, it would \u201cerase [his] conviction […] weaken deterrence, and send a deeply damaging message that perpetrators of large-scale financial fraud can escape permanent accountability.\u201d The resolution would be non-binding, as a US president\u2019s pardon power is enshrined in the Constitution.<\/p>\n \u201c[The US Senate] affirms that the 25-year sentence imposed upon Bankman-Fried reflects the extraordinary scale and deliberateness of his crimes, his lack of remorse, and the catastrophic harm inflicted upon millions of victims, and that such a sentence serves the interests of justice,\u201d read the resolution.<\/p>\n Source: <\/em>Senator Rub\u00e9n Gallego<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n The resolution came after Bankman-Fried formally applied for a pardon from Trump<\/a> of his conviction on seven felony counts related to the misuse of FTX user funds. Last week, a federal appeals court upheld that conviction and sentence<\/a>, leaving his only legal path forward a presidential pardon or an appeal to the US Supreme Court.<\/p>\n Bankman-Fried was convicted in November 2023 following the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX a year earlier, which resulted in investor losses totaling billions of dollars. He was later sentenced to 25 years in prison.\u00a0<\/p>\n Related: <\/strong><\/em>Onchain, in court: What happened in crypto legal news this week<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n Following his sentencing in March 2024, the former CEO posted<\/a> several messages to social media aligning with Trump\u2019s political agenda, including US military actions in Venezuela and Iran. However, in a January interview with the New York Times, the president said<\/a> he had no plans to pardon Bankman-Fried.<\/p>\n Source: <\/em>Sam Bankman-Fried<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n Cointelegraph sought comment from Gallego\u2019s office but did not receive an immediate response. A spokesperson for Lummis said that the senator \u201cwants him to know that her and her colleagues think Mr. Fried is right where he belongs\u201d by introducing the resolution.<\/p>\n Although some of the former executives of the defunct cryptocurrency exchange were sentenced to time served in exchange for their cooperation and testimony at SBF\u2019s trial, one is still in federal prison, and another was released earlier this year.\u00a0<\/p>\n Caroline Ellison, the former CEO of Alameda Research, received a two-year sentence in 2024 and was given an early release in January after 14 months. FTX former engineering director Nishad Singh and co-founder Gary Wang were both sentenced to time served. All testified against SBF at trial.<\/p>\n Ryan Salame, the co-CEO of FTX Digital Markets, was sentenced to 90 months in prison related to unlawful political contributions and conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business. His wife, Michelle Bond \u2014 though not an FTX employee \u2014 was recently indicted<\/a> on charges related to her 2022 run for Congress allegedly financed with illegal campaign contributions from the crypto exchange.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/s3-images.ctmedia.io\/media\/content\/screenshot-2026-06-17-at-105649-am.png\")
<\/figure>\nOther FTX figures still serving time<\/h2>\n