Reports indicate that the former CEO of bankrupt Crypto exchange FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried (hereinafter referred to as SBF), paid Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry a huge sum of money to promote the failed company. company of.
Best-selling American author Michael Lewis said in an interview with the 60 Minutes program,NBA All-Star Stephen Curry was paid $35 million to promote the exchange, 20 hours a year for 3 years.
In an interview while promoting his new book, Going Infinite, Lewis said the book is about FTX founder SBF and that he had the pleasure of meeting the former CEO over 100 times.
During his meeting with SBF, he saw some internal FTX documents that showed how much money celebrities had made by working with the Crypto company, which is how he learned about Curry’s dealings with the exchange. .
He paid Tom Brady, the American football player, $55 million to work 20 hours a year for three years. He paid Curry $35 million, also for three years, Lewis said.
Lewis also said,The exchange has also paid tens of millions of dollars to several other celebrities to promote FTX, including a Super Bowl ad。
Stephen Curry became a global ambassador for FTX in 2021 and holds a stake in the company, which welcomed the NBA All-Star to the fold in a tweet.
The article read, Welcome NBA superstar Stephen Curry to the FTX team! We are excited to announce that he has become an FTX global ambassador and shareholder. However, it would be better if @StephenCurry 30 himself makes the announcement.
Additionally, a commercial featuring NBA All-Stars was created, voiced by NBA legend Shaquille ONeal. The central idea of the ad is that even though Curry is new to the crypto space, FTX’s ease of use will help him succeed in the industry.
SBF currently faces multiple federal charges, including wire fraud, money laundering and securities fraud. His trial begins on October 3, 2023, the same day Lewis’s new book is released,And Lewiss new book on SBF may function as a kind of letter to the jury。
SBFs court trial in Manhattan, New York, is now on its fourth day and is expected to last six weeks。
U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan spoke directly to SBF before the jury arrived in the courtroom. Kaplan told SBF he had the right to testify, but that it was up to him, not his attorney, to do so.
In the trial on the 3rd and 4th days, FTX co-founder Gary Wang appeared as a witness to testify against SBF. In addition, Caroline Ellison, the former CEO of Alameda Research and SBFs ex-girlfriend, is also expected to testify against SBF at some point.
Gary Wang and Caroline Ellison have pleaded guilty to multiple charges since December and have been cooperating with the U.S. Attorneys Office in Manhattan for months.
