Dear President Trump, The Crypto Community does NOT want Sam Bankman-Fried Pardoned!

Bloomberg reports that Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) parents explore seeking a pardon from President Trump for their son. Rumours were swirling online about the possibility of Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) receiving an early pardon from outgoing President Joe Biden in December.

The speculation gained momentum after Wall Street Mav, a well-known influencer on X (formerly Twitter), suggested that SBF—one of the largest donors to the Democratic Party—might be granted clemency before Biden leaves office. That did not happen, now it seams SBF parents are seeking a pardon from Trump, following the pardon of Ross Ulbricht.

Key Takeaways

SBF’s Conviction: The former FTX CEO was sentenced to 25 years in prison in March 2024 for orchestrating a multi-billion-dollar fraud.
SBF VS. Ross: While Trump has the legal authority to pardon SBF, the crypto community is not seeking this pardon, Ross and SBF are 2 different characters, who had opposing intentions. While SilkRoad goal was to increase the bitcoin adoption and price, SBF and Caroline Ellison conspired to keep Bitcoin under $20K, They raised huge amount of funds for FTX and advertised heavily to reach a lot of Americans, and used the money to supress BTC.

SBF’s Conviction & Sentence

Sam Bankman-Fried, once hailed as a crypto wunderkind, was found guilty of:

✔ Wire fraud
✔ Securities fraud
✔ Commodities fraud
✔ Money laundering
✔ Campaign finance violations

In March 2024, a judge sentenced him to 25 years in prison, with an $11 billion forfeiture order.

His deep political connections—including substantial donations to Democratic candidates—have fueled speculation that he could receive leniency from Biden.

What This Means for the Crypto Industry

The SBF saga has had lasting effects on the crypto market:

✔ Regulatory Scrutiny: The FTX collapse led to tighter crypto regulations worldwide.
✔ Market Trust Issues: Investor confidence in centralized exchanges (CEXs) has been shaken.
✔ Political Fallout: Crypto donations have become a controversial topic in U.S. politics.

In general, SBF had a net negative effect on the crypto industry.