Court Sets Deadline in SBF Motion Case

A US court has set a deadline for federal authorities to respond to a motion for a new trial filed by Sam Bankman-Fried. The former FTX CEO, convicted in 2023 on seven criminal counts and later sentenced to 25 years in prison, continues to pursue legal avenues to challenge his conviction.

In a filing submitted Wednesday to the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, Judge Lewis Kaplan ordered the US government to provide its response by March 11. The motion for a new trial was filed earlier this month. Bankman-Fried argues that newly presented witness testimony could strengthen his defense.

The former head of FTX was once one of the most recognizable figures in the cryptocurrency and blockchain industry. After the exchange collapsed in November 2022, he stepped down from his position and was subsequently charged in the United States with misusing customer funds.

In March 2024, the court sentenced him to 25 years in prison. His legal team has appealed both the conviction and the sentence. As of Thursday, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit had not issued a ruling on the matter.

Former Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison also testified in the case and cooperated with US authorities as part of a plea agreement. She was released in January after serving 440 days in custody. Meanwhile, Ryan Salame, former co-CEO of FTX Digital Markets, received a sentence of more than seven years in prison and remains incarcerated.

Speculation has emerged over whether Bankman-Fried is seeking a presidential pardon. After keeping a relatively low profile on social media during his first year in prison, he later began posting messages supportive of US President Donald Trump and questioning aspects of the FTX collapse narrative.

In March 2025, he gave an interview to political commentator Tucker Carlson. Reports suggest that following the interview, he was transferred to a federal correctional facility. He has also claimed to have had stronger ties with Republicans than Democrats.

This year, Bankman-Fried has posted multiple times on X, alleging political bias in his case. He has praised Trump’s efforts to combat such bias while criticizing Judge Kaplan for overseeing a 2023 civil defamation case involving then-presidential candidate Trump.

Despite these actions, the White House has repeatedly stated that President Donald Trump is not considering a pardon for the former FTX chief. These statements appeared, among other places, in a January interview with The New York Times and in a Tuesday report by Fortune. Since returning to office, Trump has pardoned several individuals connected to the cryptocurrency and blockchain industry, including former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao and Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht.