Crypto was of course a master class in hype, paying off celebrities like Matt “Fortune favors the brave” Damon, Tom Brady, LeBron James and the confused Larry David. Kim Kardashian even paid a $1.26 million fine for pumping the unregistered token EthereumMax. FTX put its name on the Miami Heat’s stadium and Major League Baseball umpire uniforms. Many celebrities fell for the ruse. Justin Bieber paid $1.3 million for a Bored Ape Yacht Club nonfungible token that’s now worth maybe $70,000. Stupidity.
Mr. Palihapitiya recently claimed that Sam Bankman-Fried of FTX pitched him on an investment but turned him down after he asked for a better board of directors and representations on affiliated-party transactions. Angry SPAC investors almost instantly took to Twitter with hyperbole: “Game respects game” and “@chamath calls out a grift because he was inducted into the grifting hall of fame & elected president just few short years ago.”
Subscribe
‘Enforcement 40’ for 2020
Our Sponsors
Join Us On LinkedIn
Join the Securities Litigation and Enforcement Group on LinkedIn