“Personal Piggy Bank”: How the Appeals Court Described Sam Bankman-Fried’s Use of FTX Funds

TLDR

• A federal appeals court upheld Sam Bankman-Fried’s 25-year prison sentence on June 12, 2026
• The 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled unanimously against his bid for a new trial
• SBF was convicted on seven counts of fraud and conspiracy related to the collapse of FTX
• Judges rejected his claims that customer funds were safe and that he was denied a fair trial
• His bid for a presidential pardon from Donald Trump appears unlikely to succeed

Sam Bankman-Fried’s attempt to overturn his 25-year prison sentence has failed after a federal appeals court ruled against him on June 12, 2026.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, based in Manhattan, upheld the original conviction in a unanimous decision. Three judges rejected every argument Bankman-Fried made in his appeal.

What the Court Found

Bankman-Fried was convicted in November 2023 on seven counts of fraud and conspiracy. Prosecutors said it was likely the largest financial fraud of the past decade, comparing it to Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme.

The court found the government’s case against him “conservatively stated, robust.” Circuit Judge Barrington Parker wrote that Bankman-Fried used FTX “as his own personal piggy bank,” spending customer funds on real estate, political contributions, and investments.

This happened while he was publicly telling customers, investors, and regulators that their funds were safe.

Bankman-Fried had filed for appeal in September 2024. His lawyers argued he was denied a fair trial and was blocked from introducing certain evidence. They also claimed customer investments were sound and that FTX had enough liquidity to repay customers.

Bankman-Fried founded both FTX, one of the world’s largest crypto exchanges, and the hedge fund Alameda Research. Alameda played a central role in the fraud. FTX collapsed in November 2022, wiping out billions in customer funds.

He was sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2024.

Pardon Bid Faces Steep Odds

Bankman-Fried is also pursuing a presidential pardon from Donald Trump. His clemency request appeared on the U.S. Department of Justice Office of the Pardon Attorney website in early June 2026.

In a Fox Business interview, Bankman-Fried said he was “absolutely” seeking a pardon. However, Trump told the New York Times in January that he had no plans to pardon him.

A White House spokesperson declined to comment last week, pointing back to Trump’s earlier remarks.

Trump has granted high-profile pardons before. He pardoned Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht in January 2025. Ulbricht had been serving two life sentences plus 40 years for running a dark web marketplace that used Bitcoin as its main payment method.

In late April 2026, a federal judge had already rejected Bankman-Fried’s separate bid for a new trial at the district court level, calling key claims in his motion “wildly conspiratorial.”

With the appeals court now ruling against him and a pardon looking unlikely, Bankman-Fried’s legal options are narrowing.

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