Tag: ftx

Trevor Lawrence settles FTX crypto endorsement lawsuit

Trevor Lawrence reportedly settled the lawsuit he was facing for his endorsement of FTX, a collapsed cryptocurrency exchange.

Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence agreed to a settlement in a class action lawsuit that was filed against him and several other celebrities and athletes last year for their endorsement of FTX, according to Bloomberg.

Lawrence, 23, was part of a group that included Tom Brady, Stephen Curry, Shaquille O’Neal, and Shohei Ohtani who were sued and accused of misleading the public regarding FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange that collapsed and went bankrupt in 2022. The founder of FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, is currently facing several fraud-related charges and up to 100 years in prison.

Just prior to joining the Jaguars as the No. 1 pick of the 2021 NFL draft, Lawrence signed a multiyear sponsorship deal with FTX (known as Blockfolio at the time):

While many believed that Lawrence accepted his entire $24.1 million signing bonus from the Jaguars in cryptocurrency, he pushed back against that claim.

According to Bloomberg, Lawrence and YouTube influencers Kevin Paffrath and Tom Nash are the first three listed in the lawsuit to reach a settlement. Terms of the agreement weren’t disclosed in the report.

Lawyers leading the case told Bloomberg they are “engaged in ongoing confidential, settlement discussions” with other defendants and there is a “likelihood that other FTX settlements will be reached.”

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Shaq finally got served papers for the FTX lawsuit while covering the Heat-Celtics series in the former FTX Arena

What a wild saga this has become.

The irony is rich with this one, folks. Shaquille O’Neal had reportedly been dodging lawyers trying to serve him complaints in the FTX lawsuit after he appeared in commercials endorsing the crypto exchange company that has since gone bankrupt.

During an interview on Tuesday night with Stephen Curry, Shaq appeared to actually make a joke about the lawsuit. He congratulated Curry on winning the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice award, but then also awkwardly thanked him for “getting me in trouble,” which was both hilarious and also very cryptic.

Everyone assumed that this was in relation to the FTX lawsuit that Shaq had been dodging for months. The NBA on TNT big man previously said Curry was the only reason he began working with FTX.

What makes this even wilder is that, apparently, on the same night Shaq made this joke, he’d reportedly finally been served two complaints from the lawsuit, according to People. 

The process server actually came to Shaq while at work at Kaseya Center — ironically, formerly known as FTX arena — and served him his papers, per Pro Football Talk.

Attorney Adam Moskowitz said the interaction was recorded by the server to eliminate any ambiguity.

“These claims now are very serious and thus it is good that we can start with the merits, instead of the silly service sideshow Mr. O’Neal unfortunately created,” Moskowitz said.

The irony here is palpable. This happened after Shaq made the joke to Curry. And, to top it all off, it all happened in the former FTX Arena.

That’s just wild. Shaq had reportedly been dodging process servers for months. They’ve reportedly come to his home, his work at TNT’s studios and even his ex-wife’s home in attempts to serve him. For it to happen like this is unreal.

O’Neal isn’t the only celebrity involved in this. Curry, obviously, is also included. But Tom Brady, Larry David, Naomi Osaka and even Gisele Bündchen also all promoted the crypto exchange in commercials.

Shaq has been in tons of commercials and endorsed lots of different products since retiring. Now, after this, maybe he’ll be a bit more judicious in that process.

Trevor Lawrence among athletes, celebrities sued for FTX crypto collapse

Trevor Lawrence is facing a lawsuit for his partnership with now-bankrupt FTX.

Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence was one of several athletes and celebrities named in a class action lawsuit filed Tuesday that seeks damages stemming from the collapse and bankruptcy of cryptocurrency exchange FTX.

Lawrence — and a list of other defendants that includes Tom Brady, Stephen Curry, Shaquille O’Neal, and Shohei Ohtani — are accused of not disclosing “the nature, scope, and amount of compensation” they received to promote FTX and not performing “any due diligence” before marketing FTX products to the public.

FTX was founded in 2019 and was one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in 2021, but filed for bankruptcy earlier this month.

Lawrence, 23, signed a multiyear sponsorship with FTX (known as Blockfolio at the time) days ahead of the 2021 NFL Draft when he was picked first overall by the Jaguars.

Earlier this year, there were reports that Lawrence took his entire $24 million signing bonus in cryptocurrency and lost about $15 million in the 2022 crash of the industry. But the Jaguars quarterback pushed back on those claims in a now-deleted tweet that said people were confusing his NFL signing bonus with the bonus he received for partnering with FTX.

Super Bowl commercial Rewind: The Director’s Cut of FTX’s ‘Don’t Miss Out’

Looking for more Larry David? You’re in luck!

If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.

And if you can get Larry David to tag along, all the better.

Cryptocurrency exchange FTX jumped into the Super Bowl commercial lineup this year, bringing along the bespectacled skeptic as the brand’s “anti-spokesman.”

“We need to meet people where they are—and that means embracing skepticism,” FTX Co-Founder and CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried, said in a statement about the brand’s mass-market play. “A lot of people who are now the biggest advocates of crypto once had significant reservations.”

The debut was one of several digital currency movers that competed for attention on advertising’s biggest stage—a group complemented by a pre-release buildup typically reserved for major celebrities on a press tour.

In general, what the crypto world unveiled was a letdown, not uncommon on this stage but certainly exacerbated by the fact that many expected the genre to provide the same type of epic surge as the dot-com era.

But if you’re looking at each with a literal lens—gains and losses—then FTX would undoubtedly be one that gained.

Related: What was that? Coinbase’s QR code Super Bowl commercial confuses viewers

Photo courtesy of Greta Gustafson, dentsuMB

Overall, the 60-second journey through history with Larry David curbing inventors’ enthusiasms was a hit. The heavy doses of “Eh” and “EEEEEHH” toward notable progress eventually landed at No. 16 in the USA TODAY Ad Meter ratings—which was impressive, considering there we 64 national ads and a ton of high-level production from major brands.

And speaking of behind the camera, the overall tone in the ad strikes a familiar style for a good reason. It was directed by Jeff Schaffer, a longtime creative partner on both “Seinfeld” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm”—who was reportedly the driving force for turning Larry from commercial naysayer to Super Bowl pitchman.

Wrap all that into one spot and it’s pretty, pretty, pretty good.

Watch the extended Director’s Cut here:

2022 USA TODAY Ad Meter Top 10

2022 USA TODAY Ad Meter Bottom 5

There are more awards to hand out: See this year’s Ad Meter Replay Ratings nominees and cast a vote – give your favorites the spotlight they deserve! Replay Ratings close on February 17.