In late February, Sam Bankman-Fried, who was sentenced to 25 years in prison for fraud over thethrough the FTX exchangesuddenly appeared in X. This was the first series of publications since 2023. And not about crypto, but about the labor market. Later, on March 6, Benkman-Fried, also known as SBF, gave an interview from prison, where he has been for two years. He is serving his time next door to Diddy. During a nearly 43-minute conversation with Tucker Carlson, SBF spoke about life in captivity, politics, his personal life, and, of course, FTX.
During the interview, Benkman-Fried shed some light on his life in Brooklyn’s «Metropolitan» prison, where he now often plays chess and reads novels. He spoke about his daily friendship with inmate Sean Diddy Combs, whom he described as a good guy. Both are held in a high-security cell, isolated from other prisoners. Benkman-Fried also discussed the informal economy among prisoners, mentioning that cupcakes have become a form of currency in the prison.
Reflecting on his 25-year sentence for fraud and money laundering, SBF expressed uncertainty about his future. He criticized the Biden administration for politicizing the Department of Justice. And then he supported the Republican Party’s position on certain issues.
When Carlson asked why significant political donations did not keep Bankman-Fried out of jail, SBF suggested that the shift from openly supporting Democrats to quietly funding Republicans in 2022 may have played against him, especially after the FTX crash.
«In 2020, I supported Biden and was a center-leftist. But until 2022, I donated equally to both parties. When this came to light during the FTX crash, I think it dealt me a blow»,” he explained.
We would like to remind you that Benkman-Fried’s parents asked US President Donald Trump to pardon their son, as in January he pardoned Ross Ulbricht, who ran the Silk Road darknet market.
Benkman-Fried still pleads not guilty.
«I don’t think I’m a criminal».
By the way, the conversation with Tucker Carlson was dedicated to SBF’s 33rd birthday. She said led to the resignation Sam’s crisis PR manager, Mark Botnick, who said he was unaware of the interview arrangement.