Trump: Not Considering Pardoning SBF

**January 9th Brief** Former U.S. President Donald Trump explicitly told The New York Times in an interview that he will not consider pardoning FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF). SBF was convicted in 2023 of embezzling customer funds, financial fraud, and other charges—one of the crypto industry’s most high-profile criminal cases. When asked about potential pardons for several high-profile inmates during the interview, SBF was explicitly excluded. Trump stated he has no intention of using his pardon power for individuals including SBF. Reports also note musician Sean Combs (Diddy) wrote to Trump requesting a pardon but was similarly rejected. By contrast, Trump has pardoned political allies or people who support his "politicized justice" narrative in recent years—but SBF is not under consideration. Analysis indicates SBF’s chance of early release via a presidential pardon is extremely low in the foreseeable future. His criminal and civil accountability processes will continue, with ongoing major impacts on compliance and regulatory talks in the crypto space.