Sam Bankman-Fried Praises Trump’s Controversial Pardon of Honduran Ex-President, Seen as Bid for Clemency
- From Prison Mates to Pardon Praise: The SBF-Hernández Connection
- Why SBF’s Clemency Hopes Face Steep Odds
- The Political Calculus Behind Trump’s Pardon
- FTX’s Shadow Looms Over SBF’s Social Media Moves
- Questions and Answers
In a surprising twist, Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), the disgraced founder of collapsed crypto exchange FTX, publicly applauded former U.S. President Donald Trump’s December 2025 pardon of convicted Honduran ex-leader Juan Orlando Hernández. The move is widely interpreted as SBF’s indirect plea for his own clemency while serving a 25-year fraud sentence. This article unpacks the unlikely prison friendship, the political calculus behind Trump’s pardon, and why SBF’s chances of freedom remain slim despite his lobbying efforts.
From Prison Mates to Pardon Praise: The SBF-Hernández Connection
Bankman-Fried and Hernández shared time at New York’s Metropolitan Detention Center before the latter’s controversial release on December 1, 2025. "Juan was one of the most kind-hearted people I met inside," SBF wrote via a managed X account, calling Hernández’s 2024 drug trafficking conviction a "setup" and "mockery of justice." The warmth seems jarring given Hernández’s proven ties to cartels—during his 2014-2022 presidency, prosecutors showed he used Honduran police to protect 400+ metric tons of cocaine shipments to the U.S., accepting millions in bribes including $1M from El Chapo’s Sinaloa Cartel.
Why SBF’s Clemency Hopes Face Steep Odds
Unlike pardoned crypto figures like Binance’s Changpeng Zhao, SBF’s $5.2M donations to Biden’s 2020 campaign complicate his case. "Trump pardons allies, not adversaries," notes BTCC analyst Mark Chen. Prediction markets agree—Polymarket gives just 2% odds of SBF’s pardon by 2025. His legal team’s appeal for a retrial (currently in the 2nd Circuit) faces hurdles after November 2023’s seven-count fraud conviction for misusing FTX customer funds.
The Political Calculus Behind Trump’s Pardon
Trump’s November 28 pardon announcement called Hernández "unjustly treated"—a curious stance given the ex-president’s 45-year sentence (of which he served
FTX’s Shadow Looms Over SBF’s Social Media Moves
Despite incarceration, SBF remains oddly active online via proxies, still claiming FTX was "solvent at collapse." Legal experts say these statements could hurt his appeal. "Every tweet is another nail in his legal coffin," warns former SEC attorney Lisa Bragança. Meanwhile, victims of FTX’s $8B implosion watch bitterly as SBF angles for freedom while their claims crawl through bankruptcy court.
Questions and Answers
Why did Sam Bankman-Fried praise Juan Orlando Hernández’s pardon?
SBF’s effusive praise for Hernández’s controversial pardon is widely seen as an indirect appeal for his own clemency. Having shared prison time with the ex-Honduran president, Bankman-Fried emphasized their friendship while criticizing Hernández’s conviction—a possible attempt to frame himself similarly as a victim of overzealous prosecution.
What are the chances Sam Bankman-Fried receives a pardon?
Current prediction markets suggest minimal likelihood (2-4%) of SBF receiving a pardon in 2025. His substantial donations to Biden’s campaign—Trump’s political rival—and the severity of his fraud conviction (25-year sentence) make him an unlikely candidate for presidential clemency compared to other crypto figures who maintained better relations with Trump.
How is Sam Bankman-Fried communicating from prison?
Despite incarceration, SBF has maintained an active presence on platform X (formerly Twitter) through accounts managed by associates. These posts—which include unsubstantiated claims about FTX’s solvency and commentary on others’ legal cases—have drawn criticism for potentially undermining his appeal process.
