Cryptocurrency supporters in Washington have spent the last four years working to rinse the stench of Sam Bankman-Fried off of legislative efforts that could legitimize digital assets. Now, as the convicted former crypto tycoon publicly vies for a pardon, the industry’s leading cheerleaders in Congress are urging President Donald Trump not to take the bait. Bankman-Fried, who was convicted in 2023 on fraud charges after his FTX crypto exchange collapsed, has been heaping praise on Trump and claiming on social media in recent months that his exchange was solvent — apparently part of a brazen campaign to win a pardon ... (full story)