Sam Bankman-Fried’s lawyers ask for prison sentence of 63 to 78 months

The defense team of Sam Bankman-Fried, former CEO of fallen crypto exchange FTX, requested a U.S. court to consider a sentence in the range of 63 to 78 months, according to a Tuesday court filing.

“An appropriate method of arriving at a just sentence would be to consider the Adjusted Offense Level (Subtotal) of 56, reduced by 30 levels based on zero loss, which yields an advisory Guidelines range of 63-78 months,” the court filing said.

Bankman-Fried’s defense team called the pre-sentence report’s suggested sentence of 100 years “grotesque” and objected to several elements of the PSR, such as how $10 billion is not a reasonable estimate for the amount lost in the bankruptcy. The court filing also highlighted Bankman-Fried’s upbringing, morality, attention to philanthropy and how his conduct was “never motivated by greed or status.”

“​​A sentence of decades-long duration would end Sam’s ability to lead a meaningful life and contribute to the neediest in society,” the filing said.

Meanwhile, Bankman-Fried was found guilty by a New York jury last year for defrauding investors of FTX and Alameda Research in what prosecutors called "one of the biggest financial frauds in U.S. history."

The U.S. court is expected to sentence Bankman-Fried next month.