The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has upheld Sam Bankman-Fried’s conviction on all seven counts of fraud and conspiracy. The ruling, handed down on June 12, effectively slams the door on the former FTX CEO’s most viable path to freedom.
Bankman-Fried, who was sentenced to 25 years in prison in March 2024, had argued his trial was fundamentally unfair. The appellate court disagreed, calling his claims “unpersuasive.”
The appeal that wasn’t
Bankman-Fried’s legal team filed a notice of appeal in April 2024, barely a month after sentencing. A detailed appellate brief followed in September of that year, laying out arguments that Judge Lewis A. Kaplan had imposed unfair evidentiary limitations and committed various procedural errors during the original trial.
Oral arguments took place on November 4, 2025. Judges on the panel expressed skepticism toward Bankman-Fried’s claims even during those proceedings.
