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Charlie Javice, the disgraced fintech founder convicted of defrauding JPMorgan Chase, has been seeking a presidential pardon as she fights to overturn her conviction, according to a report.
She and people close to her have reached out to individuals with ties to the Trump administration in hopes of securing clemency, people familiar with the matter told the Wall Street Journal.
The pardon push comes less than a year after Javice was sentenced to seven years in prison for orchestrating what federal prosecutors described as a years-long scheme to deceive JPMorgan into buying Frank, a college financial-aid startup she founded, for $175 million.
A Manhattan federal jury convicted Javice in March on charges including conspiracy, wire fraud, bank fraud and securities fraud.
Prosecutors alleged that Javice falsely claimed Frank had more than 4 million users when the company actually had identifying information for only a fraction of that number.
She helped create or obtain fabricated data to support those claims during JPMorgan’s due-diligence process ahead of the 2021 sale, prosecutors said.
They later called the scheme “audacious” and accused Javice of engaging in “sustained deceptive conduct” motivated by “personal greed and ambition.”
At sentencing, she expressed remorse for her actions, telling the court she was “haunted” by what she had done and would spend her life regretting the decision that turned “something meaningful into something infamous.”
US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein sentenced her to 85 months behind bars while also ordering forfeiture and restitution totaling hundreds of millions of dollars.
Javice has maintained that she was unfairly prosecuted and is appealing her conviction.
A rep for Javice told The Post, “The WSJ story is just a regurgitation of Ms. Javice’s case with no real source. Charlie is focused on her appeals.”
Her legal team previously argued that federal prosecutors worked too closely with JPMorgan during the investigation and claimed the bank selectively provided evidence while withholding information favorable to her defense.
The failed Frank acquisition has become one of the most embarrassing deals in JPMorgan’s history and a recurring headache for CEO Jamie Dimon.
Javice still faces a civil enforcement action brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission. She is also locked in a bitter dispute with JPMorgan over legal expenses that the bank was required to advance under agreements tied to the acquisition.
JPMorgan has argued that legal bills submitted on behalf of Javice and former Frank executive Olivier Amar were excessive, citing defense costs that reportedly climbed into the tens of millions of dollars and included unusual expenses ranging from cellulite cream to hundreds of dollars’ worth of gummy bears.
Despite her conviction, some supporters have remained in her corner.
Apollo Global Management CEO Marc Rowan, an investor in Frank who testified as a defense witness at trial, previously urged the court to show leniency, arguing that Javice still had much to contribute to society.
Whether that support ultimately helps her secure a pardon remains unclear.
A White House official told The Post that President Trump remains the final decision-maker on any clemency requests.
English (US)