Judge denies Sam Bankman-Fried new trial after financial fraud conviction

A federal judge in New York on Tuesday denied Sam Bankman-Fried a new trial, rejecting his claim that there are newly discovered witnesses who would give exculpatory testimony.

Bankman-Fried was convicted of masterminding one of the largest financial frauds in history stemming from the collapse of the crypto-exchange FTX. He is serving a 25-year prison sentence.

Bankman-Fried, 34, had argued to the district court judge that there are new witnesses whose testimony would warrant a new trial for him. The judge called the claim baseless.

"None of the witnesses, for example, is 'newly discovered.' Bankman-Fried well before trial knew all three of them and purportedly knew also what he hoped they would say were they to testify. He could have obtained or at least sought to compel their testimony. But he did neither," Judge Lewis Kaplan said.

Kaplan said there is no evidence the witnesses would have supported Bankman-Fried's claims that FTX was not insolvent and that his victims all were compensated fully in bankruptcy proceedings.

"This motion appears to be one part of a plan to rescue his reputation that Bankman-Fried hatched and even committed to writing after FTX declared bankruptcy but before he was indicted," Kaplan said.

Bankman-Fried was charged with seven counts of fraud, conspiracy and money laundering in what federal prosecutors have described as "one of the biggest financial frauds in American history."

Prosecutors said he used customer deposits on the cryptocurrency trading platform FTX, the company he founded, to cover losses at his hedge fund, pay off loans and buy lavish real estate, among other personal expenses.

A jury found him guilty on all charges in his 2023 federal fraud and conspiracy trial.

In 2024, Kaplan sentenced him to 25 years in prison and ordered that he forfeit $11 billion that the government can use to compensate victims.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.