Headline Roundup December 20, 2022
After FTX, Should Celebrity Endorsements Face More Scrutiny?
Summary from the AllSides News Team
After the fall of failed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, a platform with many celebrity supporters, some say that influencers arenโt facing enough consequences for controversial endorsements.
For Context: A long list of celebrities endorsed FTX and likely convinced some customers to use it, only for it to collapse amid accusations that it illegally mishandled user's money. Kim Kardashian refusing to cut ties with Balenciaga amid child exploitation accusations and David Beckham facing criticism for being a World Cup ambassador amid accusations of human rights abuses in Qatar are other recent examples of questionable celebrity brand endorsements.
Lawsuits: Some celebrities are now being sued by the Securities and Exchange Commission for their involvement in cryptocurrency endorsements, including Larry David, Steph Curry, and Tom Brady.
Where People Agree: Many voices across the political spectrum agreed that brands and celebrities should closely consider who they work with and whether the celebrity has related expertise, and that consumers should be wary of the use of celebrity endorsements to mask potential flaws with products. One family that invested in Bitcoin said FTX's celebrity endorsements were a red flag because reliable crypto companies don't usually rely so heavily on them.
Featured Coverage of this Story

Illustration by Mark Harris; photographs by Thearon W. Henderson and Mike Rasay/NBAE, via Getty Images
Remember when the actor Matt Damon pontificated about how โfortune favors the braveโ people who invest with Crypto.com? Or when the director Spike Lee applauded the digital rebellion championed by Coin Cloud? Since the spectacular collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX, Mr. Damon, Mr. Lee and most other crypto-touting celebrities have largely gone silent โ and for good reason.
There was little precedent for the scale and the star power that characterized the deluge of high-profile celebrity endorsements promoting cryptocurrencies. And now crypto values and crypto firms are going bust,...

Bloomberg via Getty Images
We should have seen it coming.
Someone called โBankman-Friedโ is probably not the best guy to trust with your money.
Especially given heโs just 30 years old, looks like a Fyre Festival committee member, slobs around in the tax-free Bahamas in his shorts and sandals, and until a few days ago, reigned supreme in a financial world dubbed a delusional โrat poisonโ by the worldโs greatest businessman, Warren Buffett.
Unfathomably, Sam Bankman-Fried managed to build a cryptocurrency exchange empire, FTX, which became the third-biggest in the world with a value of...

From Kanye West and Kim Kardashian to Tom Brady and David Beckham, celebrity brand endorsement can make millions, or end in tears (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
Celebrity Brand Endorsement, What Else? George Clooney made an estimated $40 million endorsing Nespresso, while Beyoncรฉ signed a multi-year contract with Pepsi worth $50 million, making the $26 million deal that Taylor Swift signed with Coca-Cola in 2013 look โฆ a little flat.
And as Harry Styles and Gucci bring vibrant colour to a new collection, Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappรฉ will be facing off in the World Cup Final, the Argentine kitted out in Adidas and the Frenchman wearing Nike.
Using celebrities and athletes to promote your brands has...
AllSides Picks
Blog
A House United: Bring the Film to Your Town
Braver Angels
October 5th, 2026
Headline Roundup
Record Early Voter Turnout in 2026 Midterms: Which Party Stands to Benefit?
November 3rd, 2026
Blog
Villain or Hero? How the Left and Right Covered the Lone Holdout Juror in the Lindsay Clancy Trial
Jamie Krstev
November 3rd, 2026
Blog
We're Hiring: Director of Research at AllSides
AllSides Staff
November 2nd, 2026