Sam Bankman-Freed

Person

Founder of FTX and Alameda Research, who was sentenced to 25 years in prison for fraud and conspiracy charges related to the collapse of his crypto empire.


First Mentioned

1/1/2026, 6:10:49 AM

Last Updated

1/1/2026, 6:14:58 AM

Research Retrieved

1/1/2026, 6:14:58 AM

Summary

Sam Bankman-Fried, commonly known as SBF, is the founder of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange and the hedge fund Alameda Research. Once a prominent figure in the cryptocurrency industry and a leading advocate for Effective Altruism, his financial empire collapsed in November 2022 after a liquidity crisis revealed the misappropriation of billions of dollars in customer funds. As discussed in the All-In Podcast, his downfall was characterized by a messianic complex that led to the reckless gambling of customer assets. This collapse resulted in his conviction in November 2023 on seven criminal counts, including wire fraud, securities fraud, and money laundering. In March 2024, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison and ordered to forfeit $11 billion. Despite the scale of the fraud, his early investments in companies like Anthropic and Solana significantly appreciated, contributing to a recovery process intended to make FTX victims whole.

Referenced in 1 Document
Research Data
Extracted Attributes
  • Full Name

    Samuel Benjamin Bankman-Fried

  • Philosophy

    Effective Altruism

  • Date of Birth

    1992-03-05

  • Place of Birth

    Stanford, California, USA

  • Prison Sentence

    25 years

  • Current Location

    Metropolitan Detention Center, New York City, USA

  • Financial Forfeiture

    $11 billion

  • Political Donations (2022)

    $39.8 million to Democratic causes

Timeline
  • Born in Stanford, California. (Source: Wikipedia)

    1992-03-05

  • Signed the Giving Pledge. (Source: Wikipedia)

    2022-06-01

  • FTX and Alameda Research collapse into bankruptcy following a liquidity crisis. (Source: Wikipedia)

    2022-11-01

  • Arrested in the Bahamas and extradited to the United States. (Source: Wikipedia)

    2022-12-12

  • Pleaded not guilty to fraud charges in Manhattan federal court. (Source: CNN)

    2023-01-03

  • Convicted on seven criminal counts including wire fraud and money laundering. (Source: CBS News)

    2023-11-03

  • Sentenced to 25 years in prison and ordered to forfeit $11 billion. (Source: ABC News)

    2024-03-28

  • FTX announced that nearly all customers would be repaid due to asset appreciation. (Source: CBS News)

    2024-05-08

Sam Bankman-Fried

Samuel Benjamin Bankman-Fried (born March 5, 1992), commonly known as SBF, is an American entrepreneur who was convicted of fraud and related crimes in November 2023. Bankman-Fried founded the FTX cryptocurrency exchange and was celebrated as a "poster boy" for crypto, with FTX having a global reach with more than 130 international affiliates. At the peak of his net worth, he was ranked the 41st-richest American in the Forbes 400. In November 2022, as evidence of potential fraud began to surface, depositors quickly withdrew their assets from FTX, forcing the company into bankruptcy. On December 12, 2022, Bankman-Fried was arrested in the Bahamas and extradited to the United States, where he was indicted on seven criminal charges, including wire fraud, commodities fraud, securities fraud, money laundering, and campaign finance law violations. In the case of United States v. Bankman-Fried, he was convicted of all seven counts of fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering. On March 28, 2024, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison and ordered to forfeit $11 billion. The trial was one of the most notorious cases of white-collar crime in the United States; the financier Anthony Scaramucci termed Bankman-Fried "the Bernie Madoff of crypto".

Web Search Results
  • Sam Bankman-Fried - Wikipedia

    Sam Bankman-Fried was born on March 5, 1992, to upper-middle class Jewish parents in Stanford, California. His parents are Barbara Fried and Joseph Bankman, both professors at Stanford Law School. His maternal grandmother, Adrienne Fried Block, was a noted musicologist. His maternal grandfather, George Fried, was an administrator with the New York State Supreme Court probation department. His aunt Linda P. Fried was the dean of Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. [...] He was a member of Giving What We Can and donated around half of his Jane Street salary to charity. In June 2022, he signed the Giving Pledge; his name was removed from the list's website in December 2022 following his arrest. Bankman-Fried is the founder of Future Fund, whose team included Scottish philosopher and author William MacAskill, one of the founders of the effective altruism movement. After the collapse of FTX, all members of Future Fund simultaneously resigned. As of September 1, [...] Bankman-Fried was the second-largest individual donor to Democratic causes for the 2022 U.S. elections, with total donations of $39.8 million, only behind George Soros, of which $27 million was given to the Protect Our Future PAC. Additional recipients included The Next 50 PAC, Guarding Against Pandemics PAC, and the leadership PAC for Brendan Boyle. Bankman-Fried said in February 2022 that his political contributions were not aimed at influencing his policy goals for the cryptocurrency

  • Former crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried is making a play ... - CNN

    Email Link Copied! Sam Bankman-Fried is trying to rewrite the story of one of the biggest white-collar crimes in American history. It’s a redemption effort that might have appeared far-fetched two years ago, when a jury found Bankman-Fried guilty of stealing billions of dollars from customers of his now-bankrupt crypto exchange, FTX. [...] Something isn't loading properly. Please check back later. Ad Feedback Business 5 min read # Former crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried is making a play for redemption. Under Trump, it’s not so far-fetched By Allison Morrow PUBLISHED FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried leaves Manhattan federal court on January 3, 2023, in New York, after he pleaded not guilty to charges that he cheated investors and looted customer deposits on his cryptocurrency trading platform. Seth Wenig/AP See all topics [...] In short: Bankman-Fried argues he wasn’t allowed to sufficiently defend himself from prosecutors’ charges that he stole money from customers to make high-risk bets through his crypto hedge fund, Alameda. He has repeatedly argued that FTX was solvent when it experienced the equivalent of a run on the bank in November 2022 but that he was not able to make his solvency case in front of the jury.

  • Sam Bankman-Fried - FTX

    Sam Bankman-Fried was one of the richest people in crypto, thanks to his FTX exchange and Alameda Research trading firm, before his empire came crashing down in November 2022. After users began withdrawing their investments from FTX at a rapid pace, Bankman-Fried filed for bankruptcy for FTX, FTX's U.S. operations and Alameda Research. [...] ### Sam Bankman-Fried Is Shopping His Prison Diary – Here’s A Peek Inside Disgraced former crypto billionaire Sam Bankman Fried is serving a 25-year sentence in New York City’s Metropolitan Detention Center. He’s learning about such things as sports gambling and a drug called “deuce,” and he badly misses his teddy bear Manfred. BySteven EhrlichFormer Staff Apr 11, 2024 ### Sam Bankman-Fried Appeals His 25-Year Sentence Over Fraud Schemes [...] Mar 15, 2024 ### Prosecutors Seek Up To 50-Year Prison Sentence For Sam Bankman-Fried Bankman-Fried was found guilty of seven counts of fraud and conspiracy last year over customers’ money that went missing from his cryptocurrency exchange FTX. ByAntonio Pequeño IVForbes Staff Nov 4, 2023 ### Deep Behavioral Lessons From The Case Of Sam Bankman-Fried There are lessons to be learned from the case of SBF and crypto exchange FTX, which extend well beyond fraud. ByHersh ShefrinContributor

  • Sam Bankman-Fried news - Today's latest updates

    Former billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried was convicted for orchestrating a massive financial fraud that led to downfall of crypto trading platform FTX. Mar 28, 2024 #### Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for his role in the cryptocurrency fraud scheme that brought down his company and lost investors billions. CBS News' Errol Barnett reports. Mar 28, 2024 04:32 [...] FTX says that nearly all of its customers will receive the money back they are owed, two years after the cryptocurrency exchange imploded. May 8, 2024 #### Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison for his role in the sudden collapse of the FTX crypto exchange. Prosecutors say he defrauded customers out of more than $8 billion, one of the largest financial crimes in U.S. history. Errol Barnett reports. Mar 28, 2024 02:17 [...] FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has been found guilty on all seven counts of fraud, conspiracy and money laundering following more than two weeks of testimony in one of the highest-profile financial crime cases in years. CBS News national correspondent Errol Barnett has more. Nov 3, 2023 03:52 #### Sam Bankman-Fried guilty in FTX fraud case

  • Sam Bankman-Fried News & Videos - ABC News

    ## Sam Bankman-Fried set to testify in his own defense The 31-year-old is accused of using billions in FTX customer money to pay debts at his hedge fund, buy real estate and make political contributions as he sought influence in Washington. October 26 October 26 ## Sam Bankman-Fried will testify in his own defense, lawyers say Sam Bankman-Fried is expected to testify as soon as Thursday in his own defense, his lawyers signaled during a telephone hearing Wednesday. October 26 October 12 [...] ## Disgraced FTX founder sentenced to 25 years on federal charges Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison and ordered to pay $11 billion for orchestrating one of the biggest cases of financial fraud. March 28 March 28 ## Disgraced crypto CEO Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years, must pay $11 billion Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison Thursday for orchestrating what prosecutors have called one of the biggest financial frauds in American history. [...] March 28 March 28 ## Sam Bankman-Fried to be sentenced Thursday for financial fraud Sam Bankman-Fried will be sentenced Thursday for orchestrating what prosecutors have called one of the biggest financial frauds in American history. March 28 March 28 ## Sam Bankman-Fried to be sentenced for financial fraud The former billionaire and FTX founder will be sentenced on Thursday for orchestrating what prosecutors have called one of the biggest financial frauds in American history. March 28