FTX Crypto Scammer Sam Bankman-Fried Gets 25 Years in Prison for Defrauding Investors

[Sam Bankman-Fried] faced up to 110 years. Prosecutors argued for a sentence of 40 to 50 years, while Bankman-Fried's lawyers asked for six and a half years.

Sentences for white collar crimes have varied in recent years, from 150 years for Bernard Madoff to 11 years for Elizabeth Holmes.

The 32-year-old Bankman-Fried, in his final statement before the judge, said what happened at FTX "haunts me" and that "I made a lot of mistakes."

As CEO, "I was responsible at the end of the day."

Bankman-Fried's defense lawyer tried to draw a distinction between his client and Madoff, who ran the largest Ponzi scheme in history.

"Madoff stole from Holocaust survivors," his lawyer said. "That is not Sam. He did not want to personally inflict pain on anyone in any way. Sam was not a ruthless financial serial killer. He wasn't predatory. He makes decisions with math in his head, not malice in his heart."

Dozens of FTX victims, including those who said they lost their life's savings due to the demise of the cryptocurrency exchange, submitted letters urging Kaplan to impose a harsh sentence.