FTX Founder Withdraws Request for New Trial Amid Fairness Concerns

Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the now-defunct FTX cryptocurrency exchange, has officially withdrawn his motion for a retrial, expressing concerns that he would not receive a fair trial. Currently serving a 25-year prison sentence for his role in FTX's 2022 collapse, Bankman-Fried was convicted on seven counts of fraud and conspiracy. His decision to withdraw the motion comes as he awaits the outcome of his direct appeal and a related request for the case to be reassigned. The original motion for a new trial was filed by Bankman-Fried's mother, Barbara Fried, who claimed that newly discovered evidence warranted a retrial. Bankman-Fried himself drafted the motion while in detention at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, with limited assistance from his lawyers and family members. Although he sought input from his legal team and family, including his parents, Bankman-Fried maintained that he was the primary author of the letter to the judge. The motion was filed under Rule 33, a federal rule that allows for a new trial based on newly discovered evidence or in the interest of justice. Bankman-Fried's appeal is currently pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, where his lawyer, Alexandra Shapiro, argued during oral arguments in November that the original trial was fundamentally unfair, citing restrictions on the evidence Bankman-Fried could present to the jury.