SBF's Prison Time Gets Trimmed

Sam Bankman-Fried won’t be locked up quite as long as we thought. His prison sentence just got cut by more than 4 years. New release date? December 14, 2044.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons adjusted his timeline. Now he’s looking at just under 21 years instead of the full 25. Not exactly a get-out-of-jail-free card for his $11 billion crypto fraud scheme. This kind of reduction happens through prison rules. Inmates can shave up to 54 days off their sentence each year by not causing trouble.

SBF spends his days at FCI-Terminal Island. Low-security spot in California. His downfall? Taking customer money for his hedge fund Alameda Research. That move helped trigger one of crypto’s most spectacular meltdowns.

Caroline Ellison got a break too. His ex-girlfriend. She ran Alameda Research. Original sentence was two years. Now it looks like she’ll be out by May 2026.

It’s not entirely clear how these calculations work, but they seem to be standard procedure for federal inmates who behave themselves and join certain programs. Still, SBF faces a long road ahead. Nearly two decades behind bars. Prosecutors weren’t kidding when they called this one of the biggest financial frauds America has ever seen.