Crypto Tycoon Bankman-Fried Sentenced To 25 Years In Prison

Disgraced cryptocurrency wunderkind Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in jail on Thursday — a stunning descent for a figure who seemed poised to lead an emerging sector less than two years ago.

US District Judge Lewis Kaplan said the defendant, who became known by his initials “SBF,” had shown no “real remorse,” even in his final pre-sentencing remarks in which the former billionaire rued “a series of bad decisions” but did not acknowledge knowingly violating financial laws.

Bankman-Fried said “mistakes were made, but never a word of remorse for the commission of a terrible crime,” said Kaplan, who characterized the violations as “brazen” and called out the defendant for his “exceptional flexibility” towards the truth.

Kaplan set a sentence of 25 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. The defendant also was ordered to pay $11 billion, an amount reflective of what Bankman-Fried effectively stole from other parties, according to Kaplan’s calculations.

Thursday’s sentencing followed the November 2023 conviction by a federal jury in New York of Bankman-Fried, who once made the cover of financial magazines and financed splashy Super Bowl television ads in 2022.

Although lower than the 40-50 years sought by the government, the Justice Department praised the sentence.

“Today’s sentence… is an important message to others who might be tempted to engage in financial crimes that justice will be swift, and the consequences will be severe,” said US federal prosecutor Damian Williams.

Bankman-Fried’s parents, Stanford law professors Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried, said in a statement: “We are heartbroken and will continue to fight for our son.”