FTX Founder SBF Appeals Fraud Conviction, Accuses Judge of Bias

According to a report by the New York Times, FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) has formally appealed his fraud conviction, seeking a retrial and accusing the judge who presided over his case of unfair prejudice.

Last November, a New York jury found SBF guilty on seven counts of fraud and conspiracy related to the collapse of his cryptocurrency exchange in November 2022. In March, U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan of the Southern District of New York (SDNY) sentenced SBF to 25 years in prison for his crimes, of which he has now served six months.

In a 102-page appeal filed Friday afternoon, SBF’s lawyers argued that Judge Kaplan was unfair to the FTX founder throughout the trial, making “disruptive and sarcastic remarks” that undermined the defense and “mocking” his testimony before the jury.