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Not funny: Larry David, Tom Brady and Naomi Osaka sued for promoting FTX

By Darius McQuaid

15:57, 17 November 2022

Larry David speaks on stage during the Curb Your Enthusiasm FYC Panel at DGA Theater Complex on 10 April, 2022 in Los Angeles, California
David was the star of a Super Bowl ad for FTX – Photo: Getty Images

Professional sport stars including Tom Brady, Naomi Osaka and Stephen Curry, along with comedian Larry David, have been named as defendants in a class-action lawsuit against failed crypto exchange FTX.

The suit argues that the stars used their status to promote the firm’s failed business model. FTX founder and former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried is also being sued, according to reports by Reuters and Cointelegraph.

FTX, the cryptocurrency derivatives exchange, made a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing on 11 November 2022.

Brady, a National Football League (NFL) quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was a brand ambassador for FTX.

Curry, three-time National Basketball Association (NBA) champion and two-time NBA Most Valuable Player, was also a global ambassador and shareholder of FTX. Curry plays for NBA team the Golden State Warriors, which is also named in the writ.

Osaka, the four-time Grand Slam women’s singles tennis champion, was a global ambassador for FTX, and held an equity stake in the company.

David, co-creator of Seinfeld and creator of Curb Your Enthusiasm, was the star of a Super Bowl ad  for FTX.

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Short position overnight fee 0.0137%
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Short position overnight fee 0.0137%
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Short position overnight fee 0.0137%
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Spread 0.0012872

The Super Bowl is the annual championship game of the NFL, and took place this year (2022) on 13 February. The minute-long FTX ad which aired during the broadcast saw David playing the part of the crypto company’s “anti-sponsor”.

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Under investigation

The lawsuit was filed on 15 November by Adam Moskowitz, a class-action lawyer, in the southern district of Florida.

He alleges the stars brought instant credibility to the crypto platform and are therefore just as culpable as Bankman-Fried.

The lawsuit states: “Part of the scheme employed by the FTX Entities involved utilising some of the biggest names in sports and entertainment – like these defendants – to raise funds and drive American consumers to invest ... pouring billions of dollars into the deceptive FTX platform to keep the whole scheme afloat.”

FTX is under investigation by US state and federal authorities for allegedly investing depositors’ funds in ventures without their approval. 

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The difference between trading assets and CFDs
The main difference between CFD trading and trading assets, such as commodities and stocks, is that you don’t own the underlying asset when you trade on a CFD.
You can still benefit if the market moves in your favour, or make a loss if it moves against you. However, with traditional trading you enter a contract to exchange the legal ownership of the individual shares or the commodities for money, and you own this until you sell it again.
CFDs are leveraged products, which means that you only need to deposit a percentage of the full value of the CFD trade in order to open a position. But with traditional trading, you buy the assets for the full amount. In the UK, there is no stamp duty on CFD trading, but there is when you buy stocks, for example.
CFDs attract overnight costs to hold the trades (unless you use 1-1 leverage), which makes them more suited to short-term trading opportunities. Stocks and commodities are more normally bought and held for longer. You might also pay a broker commission or fees when buying and selling assets direct and you’d need somewhere to store them safely.
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