White House Considers 250 Presidential Pardons in Honor of America's Semiquincentennial
The Trump administration is weighing 250 potential pardons to mark the United States' 250th anniversary, as cryptocurrency executives and advocates connected to FTX, Tornado Cash, and Samourai Wallet seek clemency.
President Donald Trump is weighing the possibility of granting clemency to 250 individuals as part of celebrations marking America's 250th anniversary on July 4, The Wall Street Journal has reported.
The formal announcement may be made on June 14, which coincides with Trump's birthday, or alternatively during the July 4 Independence Day celebrations, the WSJ revealed on Thursday, according to sources with knowledge of the discussions.
The pardons remain in early planning phases, though, and have not yet received final approval. Last year alone, over 16,000 official petitions for presidential clemency were filed.
During his first day of his return to the White House last year, Trump granted clemency to over 1,500 individuals connected to the January 6, 2021 Capitol incident. Since Trump's inauguration, numerous imprisoned cryptocurrency entrepreneurs and their advocates have been lobbying for presidential pardons.
The White House has been contacted by Cointelegraph for a statement.
FTX, Samourai Wallet founders want pardons
Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of FTX, was found guilty on all seven criminal charges related to the cryptocurrency exchange's failure and received a 25-year prison sentence in 2024. He has launched an online campaign seeking a pardon, though Trump has allegedly dismissed the possibility earlier this year.
One of the creators of the crypto-mixing service Samourai Wallet, Keonne Rodriguez, has similarly voiced his desire for a presidential pardon.
In December of last year, Trump indicated he would examine Rodriguez's situation and consider granting a pardon. A petition supporting this effort had collected 16,082 signatures by Thursday.
At the same time, a minimum of two petitions requesting pardons for Tornado Cash creators Roman Storm and Roman Semenov are currently active; nevertheless, they have garnered merely 22 and 9 signatures, respectively. Storm has not made any public appeals for clemency.
Last August, Storm was found guilty of charges related to conspiring to run an unlicensed money transmitting operation and continues to face accusations of money laundering and conspiracy to violate sanctions. Semenov is believed to be a fugitive and remains on the FBI's wanted list.
Cryptocurrency supporters have been monitoring the Rodriguez and Storm cases intently, with many contending that these developers should not bear responsibility for how third parties choose to utilize their software.
Some crypto pardons already granted
A number of cryptocurrency entrepreneurs have already been granted presidential pardons during Trump's current presidential term.
The White House issued pardons last year to the BitMEX crypto exchange co-founders: Arthur Hayes, Benjamin Delo and Samuel Reed, all of whom admitted guilt to charges of failing to implement adequate anti-money laundering and know-your-customer protocols, thereby violating the Bank Secrecy Act.
In 2025, Binance founder Changpeng "CZ" Zhao also received a pardon. He had already completed a four-month incarceration after admitting guilt to a single charge of violating the US Bank Secrecy Act by failing to establish an adequate anti-money laundering system at Binance.
Among the first individuals to receive clemency from Trump in January 2025 was Ross Ulbricht, the Silk Road founder, who was serving a life sentence for his role in running the dark web marketplace.