FTX Founder SBF's Appeal Rejected: 25-Year Prison Sentence Upheld

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried's (SBF) bid to overturn his fraud conviction and 25-year prison sentence has been crushed by a federal appeals court. The decision delivers finality to one of the largest financial fraud cases in history and signals tougher accountability for crypto executives.

The three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan denied Bankman-Fried's appeal on June 12, 2026. The court upheld his 2023 conviction on seven felony counts, including wire fraud and conspiracy charges.

Defense lawyers had argued that U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan improperly excluded evidence showing FTX was solvent and could meet customer withdrawals. Prosecutors countered that testimony from Bankman-Fried's former lieutenants proved he directed the theft of customer funds to cover losses at Alameda Research.