Sam Bankman-Fried Withdraws New Trial Request Citing Lack of Fair Hearing

Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of collapsed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, has withdrawn his request for a new trial in a federal court case. He had filed the request under Rule 33, seeking a do-over after being convicted of orchestrating a multi-billion-dollar fraud scheme in 2023.

In a letter to U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan, Bankman-Fried stated that he was representing himself, despite receiving help with the motion from his parents. He acknowledged sharing drafts of the document with them, and they made some editorial suggestions, which were incorporated into the final version.

Bankman-Fried's parents had previously attempted to distance themselves from recent legal efforts, seeking lawyers who have a connection to former President Donald Trump. However, Bankman-Fried stated that he did not receive assistance from his appellate lawyer or others involved in his criminal trial.