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Additional reporting by Sherin Shibu.
The collapse of Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX crypto empire was not only felt by those deep in the crypto community — some big-name entrepreneurs and celebrities lost a lot of money, too.
Although SBF allegedly led investors to believe he could bring them high returns with little risk, more than a million people may have been affected by the collapse, and big-spending-crypto-newbies quickly found out that trading crypto isn’t for the faint of heart.
RELATED: Sam Bankman-Fried Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for Multibillion-Dollar Crypto Fraud
In November, Bankman Fried was found guilty on seven counts of fraud, embezzlement, and criminal conspiracy for orchestrating “one of the biggest financial frauds in American history” after a bank run exposed an $8 billion hole in company accounts and a piggy bank relationship with Alameda Research crypto trading firm.
Bankman-Fried was sentenced on Thursday in a Manhattan federal court to 25 years in prison.
Southern District of New York Judge Lewis Kaplan said that Bankman-Fried was “extremely smart” and agreed with prosecutors that Bankman-Fried “wanted to be a hugely, hugely politically influential person in this country.”
Kaplan stated that the loss amount to the victims of Bankman-Fried’s crimes surpassed $550 million and that investors lost billions.
Meanwhile, FTX’s new CEO John Ray, who stepped in for SBF after the company filed for bankruptcy, said the company has located $5 billion in cash and other assets, and while they are not done discovering unearthed funds, they plan to also sell over $4.6 billion in additional holdings as well.
It’s unclear how the recovered funds will be divvied up, but typically in bankruptcy proceedings, only bond-holders are eligible to recoup a portion of their losses, while those with equity stakes are left at a loss, according to Markets Insider.
Sequoia Capital likely suffered the greatest loss for an outside investor in the exchange with its $200 million investment, which peaked at $350 million in January 2022, according to data obtained by Forbes.
RELATED: Who Is FTX Founder Sam Bankman-Fried?
While Sequoia reportedly told investors its FTX investment was offset by its $7.5 billion in realized and unrealized gains, Singapore investment company Temasek didn’t get as lucky.
The company reportedly invested $210 million for 1% of FTX and $65 million for 1.5% of FTX U.S. but has since determined its stakes to zero.
Additionally, investment company Paradigm is said to have invested $215 million, while the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan invested $75 million, and has since written its investment to zero.
Here’s a look at some of the famous faces who lost big in the FTX crypto collapse.
Tom Brady
Tom Brady is the most famous face to promote and invest in FTX — and he also may have suffered the greatest individual loss. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback owned over 1.1 million common shares of FTX Trading, which equaled about $45 million before the company went bankrupt, according to Bloomberg.
While his investment is now zero in the wake of the collapse, he previously advocated for the exchange and appeared in several promotional ads with his now ex-wife Gisele Bündchen.
Gisele Bündchen
Along with her now ex-husband, Tom Brady, the supermodel also lost a significant portion of her wealth in the exchange. Bündchen reportedly owned 680,000 FTX shares, which were valued at about $25 million.
Kevin O’Leary
The Shark Tank entrepreneur was a fierce advocate for SBF’s FTX before the crypto exchange’s fall. As a paid spokesperson for the company, O’Leary owned 32,000 shares in FTX and 110,000 shares of FTX US. He said his shares were valued at $1 million during a U.S. Senate Banking Committee in December, adding that he has since “written them off to zero.”
O’Leary told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” in December that he was paid around $15 million to act as a paid spokesperson for the brand and put just under $10 million into the crypto exchange. But he said his crypto investment is now equal to zero.
Robert Kraft
New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft also fell victim to FTX. He reportedly owned about 630,000 total FTX-related shares through KPC Venture Capital LLC, an entity connected to the Kraft Group.
Using O’Leary’s valuation, the NFL team owner may have lost an eight-figure investment.
Robert Belfer
Billionaire oil baron Robert Belfer, who was once known as the heir to bankrupt gas company Enron, also reportedly lost millions with FTX’s collapse. Two firms linked to the Belfer family held shares in both FTX and FTX US with a combined stake of $34.5 million, according to court documents obtained by the Financial Times. Belfer was also notably entangled in Bernie Madoff’s infamous Ponzi Scheme.
Anthony Scaramucci
Donald Trump’s former communications director was also wrapped up in the FTX collapse with his alternative investment company, SkyBridge Capital. Last September, FTX acquired 30% of SkyBridge Capital, per The Street, and while the details of the deal are unknown, Scaramucci said he was also at a loss despite the purchase.
“We lost money in general because the overall portfolio is going down as a result of this debacle, so yes I guess yes,” he said when asked about the collapse in November at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in Singapore.
Stephen Curry
Stephen Curry was one of the many celebrities to endorse FTX with his various commercials and his 2021 partnership with the brand. Like Brady and Bündchen, Curry also got a stake in FTX for his work with the company.
Curry’s team, the Golden State Warriors, was also entangled in the scandal after FTX agreed to pay $10 million for an international rights sponsorship deal that gave the exchange in-area signage, exclusive brand placements, and the rights to the team’s NFTs in December 2021.
Want to learn more about crypto? As the world’s leading crypto expert, @stephencurry30 has got you covered…or does he?
https://t.co/KACxuGfVLq pic.twitter.com/liVDS37DAP
— FTX (@FTX_Official) March 29, 2022
Curry is also named in a class action lawsuit that claims the celebrities who endorsed FTX participated in deceptive strategies to “induce confidence and to drive consumers to invest in what was ultimately a Ponzi scheme,” according to the lawsuit.
Sam Bankman-Fried, Tom Brady, Gisele Bundchen, Kevin O’Leary, Shaquille O’Neal, Udonis Haslem, David Ortiz, William Trevor Lawrence, Shohei Ohtani, Naomi Osaka, and Larry David were also mentioned in the suit.
Naomi Osaka
Tennis star Naomi Osaka also signed a long-term partnership agreement with FTX in March that was supposed to help bring women into the crypto world, according to Reuters. She was given an equity stake in the company and received compensation in the form of crypto.
A four-time Grand Slam champion, @naomiosaka is changing the game on and off the court. We’re incredibly proud to call her our newest partner!
working to make #bitcoin and crypto more accessible. pic.twitter.com/aA3wd7eY0r
— FTX (@FTX_Official) March 21, 2022
David Ortiz
Red Sox baseball legend David Ortiz also signed on to be an FTX ambassador in October 2021 and agreed to be compensated in cryptocurrency, per CoinDesk. At the time, he agreed to release multiple NFT collections, while FTX agreed to sponsor the David Ortiz Celebrity Golf Classic and donate to the David Ortiz’s Children’s Fund. It’s unclear if the fund will be required to repay the donations if they are found to have been made with customer money.
Check out our Dirty Money Podcast for our take on Crypto Crook Sam Bankman-Fried.
