BeInCrypto previously reported that former FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has drawn attention for the possibility of an early release.
Tweets from figures like Elon Musk indicate that this possibility is likely.
So, how likely is it that the FTX founder could leave prison less than a year after his conviction?
In 2020, at the peak of FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried donated $5.2 million to a super PAC supporting Biden. He was the second-largest individual donor to the Democrats after Michael Bloomberg.
Historically, political donors and their affiliates have had significant advantages in terms of conviction and pardon.
Take Marc Rich, for example; this "notorious" oil trader evaded taxes of at least $50 million as early as 2021. However, Rich was pardoned on the last day of Clinton's presidency.
The controversy surrounding the pardon stems from the fact that Rich's ex-wife, Denise, was a major donor to the Democrats. She made substantial donations to Clinton's presidential library and the Democratic National Committee.
Similarly, Paul Pogue is another convicted tax fraudster who was pardoned by Trump in 2020. Reports indicate this was because Pogue's family donated over $200,000 to Trump's campaign.
Prediction market participants Kalshi posted on X: "Sam Bankman-Fried funded political activities using stolen millions from clients."
"SBF donated nearly all his funds to the Democrats (98%), making him the second-largest donor to the Democrats, and now Biden's chance of pardoning him is 12%."
Given the historical cases where political donors are more likely to receive leniency, the controversy over whether Sam Bankman-Fried might be pardoned by Biden is also understandable.
Additionally, Biden pardoned Michael Conahan last week.
Conahan was sentenced to 17 years in prison for a scandal involving "exchanging children for money." He accepted bribes from a private juvenile detention center, often sending children to those centers under the pretext of minor offenses.
This is a specific indication that Biden may not shy away from pardoning serious criminals.
In Bankman-Fried's trial, one of the most controversial points was the government's omission of charges related to campaign finance.
Initially, Bankman-Fried faced eight criminal charges, including conspiracy to defraud the United States and violations of campaign finance laws.
However, this campaign finance charge was dropped in July 2023.
Initially, the charges against Bankman-Fried were dropped due to a treaty obligation with the Bahamas. Essentially, the Bahamian government was opposed to including this specific charge in the extradition request.
However, the prosecution claims it will pursue separate trials for these charges.
The purpose of the second trial is to address the dropped campaign finance charges, along with some related to bribery and unlicensed remittance business.
However, in December 2023, the prosecution announced that it would not proceed with the second trial, as the evidence for the second trial would largely repeat what had already been presented in the first trial.
Earlier this year, Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced to 25 years in prison for multiple counts of telecommunications fraud and other charges.
However, given the scale and impact of his crimes, many believe the sentence was too lenient.
The collapse of FTX cost clients and creditors over $16 billion, and the crypto asset winter also caused the market to lose over $100 billion. Thus, as one of the largest financial scandals in American history, many consider this sentencing to be lenient.
Prominent lawyer Richard W. Painter wrote: "Sam Bankman-Fried and his accomplices hope to receive a pardon or commutation in exchange for the campaign donations they stole from FTX investors. Any president who agrees to do so should be impeached for bribery."
Prosecutors initially sought a 50-year prison sentence, viewing Sam Bankman-Fried's crimes as "historic" in scope and severity.
The prosecutors emphasized the enormous financial losses suffered by FTX clients, as well as the decrease in public trust in the crypto asset market.
Additionally, Caroline Ellison, who actively took client funds from FTX and Bankman-Fried, was only sentenced to 2 years in prison due to her cooperation with prosecutors.
Most surprisingly, Gary Wang, the coder who provided unlimited credit to Alameda, completely avoided prison time.
Given these facts, and the criticism that the sentence was too lenient, the crypto asset industry is clearly anticipating that Sam Bankman-Fried might receive leniency.
However, it is important to note that the connection between donations and pardons is not always consistent.
The president may grant a pardon for other reasons, and it is difficult to definitively prove that donations were the sole or primary motivating factor.
But it is certain that cases of wealthy individuals escaping legal troubles through political donations will inevitably raise moral concerns.