Tom Brady, Stephen Curry, Larry David and Other Famous people Are Becoming Sued for Pushing FTX

A group of cryptocurrency investors are suing FTX’s ousted CEO Sam Bankman-Fried and the company’s movie star endorsors for leading to American shoppers “many billions of bucks in damages,” in accordance to a course motion lawsuit submitted on Nov. 15 in Miami, wherever FTX is headquartered.

The plaintiffs are represented by David Boies, the attorney regarded for representing Al Gore in the 2000 Supreme Courtroom circumstance determining the presidential election and Elizabeth Holmes in the Theranos fraud trial.

The defendants involve Bankman-Fried and FTX’s 11 compensated brand name ambassadors, such as Tom Brady, Gisele Bündchen, Larry David, Stephen Curry, amongst other individuals. The plaintiffs accused FTX of targeting “unsophisticated investors” with false and deceptive data and luring them into investing in the company’s generate-bearing cryptocurrency accounts. FTX’s superstar ambassadors performed a essential role in driving product sales of FTX’s yield-bearing accounts, which are unregistered securities, the plaintiffs alleged.

Several of the named famous people filmed commercials for FTX and promoted the crypto exchange on general public platforms. Here’s how just about every of them was involved with the scandalous organization.

Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen

NFL star quarterback Tom Brady and his ex-wife, supermodel Gisele Bundchen, grew to become FTX’s ambassadors last yr. They filmed a business for the crypto trade as portion of a $20 million ad campaign named “FTX. You In?” in September 2021. In the advert, the former few termed friends and acquaintances to be a part of the FTX system.

Udonis Haslem

Udonis Haslem, the captain of the Miami Warmth, also participated in FTX’s $20 million advert marketing campaign. In an ad launched at the start off of the 2021-2022 Miami Warmth year, Haslem claimed, “FTX has arrived in 305,” referring to the location code for Miami-Dade County. “So I just got a person dilemma: Are you in, Miami?”

Kevin O’Leary

“Shark Tank” star Kevin O’Leary is a shareholder and a paid out spokesperson for FTX. He has publicly endorsed the crypto trade on numerous instances.

In a now deleted tweet in 2021, he wrote, “To come across crypto investments opportunities that satisfied my have demanding benchmarks of compliance, I entered into this connection with @FTX_Formal,” in accordance to the course motion fit.

In March, O’Leary served as a decide for the FTX Charity Hackathon in Miami.

Then, in October, throughout an onstage interview at the Converge22 convention, a crypto marketplace celebration, he vouched for Sam Bankman-Fried, expressing, “I’m a big advocate for Sam because he has two mom and dad who are compliance lawyers. If there’s ever a location I could be that I’m not gonna get in difficulties, it’s going to be in FTX.”

David Ortiz

Previous MLB player David Ortiz agreed to be a FTX manufacturer ambassador in trade for cryptocurrency and several collections of NFTs, in accordance to the lawsuit. He appeared in an FTX industrial that began managing nationwide throughout the initially game of the 2021 Environment Sequence in which he claimed to a fictional character on the phone, “You’re having into crypto with FTX? I’m in!”

Stephen Curry

Golden Condition Warriors star Steph Curry had his own nationwide advertisement campaign for FTX earlier this yr known as the “#notanexpert” marketing campaign.

“I’m not an qualified, and I really don’t want to be. With FTX I have all the things I need to have to buy, provide, and trade crypto securely,” Curry unhappy in a commercial in March. “I’m fired up to husband or wife with a corporation that demystifies the crypto house and eradicates the intimidation component for initially-time buyers.”

Shaquille O’Neal

Former NBA star Shaquille O’Neal appeared in an advertisement tweeted by FTX in June in which he said, “I’m energized to be partnering with FTX to help make crypto accessible for everybody. I’m all in. Are you?”

Trevor Lawrence

NFL quarterback Trevor Lawrence turned a model ambassador for FTX in trade for unspecified cryptocurrency payments, according to the lawsuit. The 23-calendar year-old football participant appeared in a fifty percent-hour episode of FTX’s podcast in June final calendar year conversing about his sports activities job.

Shohei Ohtani

MLB star Shohei Ohtani signed a long-time period endorsement deal with FTX very last 12 months in trade for equities in the corporation and cryptocurrencies, according to the lawsuit. He appeared in an FTX professional in June titled “Shohei Does It All On a System That Trades It All.”

Naomi Osaka

Tennis star Naomi Osaka grew to become a FTX ambassador last 12 months “with the specific purpose of receiving much more gals to commence investing in crypto,” the lawsuit alleged. She was compensated an equity stake in FTX and unspecified amounts of cryptocurrency, according to the fit.

Osaka wore the FTX emblem on her outfit at tournaments, together with the 2022 Miami Open.

In an FTX ad in Mach, Osaka mentioned, “I’m Naomi Osaka and I’m very pleased to companion with FTX. Earning cryptocurrency accessible is a aim that FTX and I are striving in the direction of.”

Larry David

Comic Larry David starred in an FTX advertisement “Don’t Pass up Out on Crypto” for the duration of the 2022 Tremendous Bowl. It is the only Super Bowl commercial David ever appeared in. The advertisement featured David becoming a skeptic on this sort of historically vital innovations as the wheel, the fork, the toilet, democracy, the light-weight bulb, the dishwasher, the Sony Walkman, and finally FTX. The ad concluded with a warning for viewers, “Don’t be like Larry.”