Sam Bankman-Fried paid Tom Brady $55 million for one week’s work: author

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Tom Brady did about a week’s worth of work of disgraced cryptocurrency tycoon Sam Bankman-Fried in three years, according to best-selling author $55 million in compensation.

Michael Lewis, author of “Infinite: The Rise and Fall of the New Tycoons,” told CBS’s “60 Minutes” that former FTX chief Bankman-Fried’s A federal trial on fraud and money laundering charges is set to begin in Manhattan in December 2019. On Tuesday, big bucks were spent to get endorsements from Brady, Steph Curry and Larry David.

Bankman-Fried, who has pleaded not guilty, led a $32 billion empire that collapsed after his firm was accused of using customer deposits to cover risky bets at his hedge fund Alameda Research.

“He paid Tom Brady $55 million a year for three years to work 20 hours a day,” Lewis told CBS. Lewis followed Bankman-Fried during those fateful months when his company went bankrupt and he was arrested and indicted.

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Bankman-Fried turned to the world of sports to bring legitimacy and visibility to his FTX cryptocurrency exchange. Author Michael Lewis says he saw internal documents showing tens of millions paid to Tom Brady and Steph Curry, as well as Larry David dollars in Super Bowl advertising costs. pic.twitter.com/Fx6qfhrdPJ

— 60 Minutes (@60Minutes) October 1, 2023

Lewis said Brady’s initial reaction after learning of Bankman-Fried’s fall from grace was one of “sadness.”

“(Brady) really liked him and he really liked the hope he brought,” Lewis said, adding that the Super Bowl champion was “crushed.”

“As time went on and he stopped getting a really good explanation for what happened, I think (Brady) was like, ‘He cheated on me. I’m angry. I don’t want anything to do with it anymore,'” Lewis said.

According to Lewis, Golden State Warriors basketball superstar Curry was paid $35 million for doing the same amount of work.

The author also noted that Bankman-Fried also paid actor and comedian Larry David $10 million to appear in FTX’s Super Bowl ad — in addition, the ad cost $25 million to produce dollars, and Bankman also made a cameo in the ad. Freed’s father, Joseph Bankman.

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“He became toxic. Like, no one wanted to talk to him. He had no friends,” Michael Lewis said.

For those driven by ideals to do good on a large scale, “there’s still a Sam-Bankman-Fried hole in the world that now needs to be filled,” Lewis said. https://t.co/Xyofx7MQUU pic.twitter.com/NSDTGqnYaW

— 60 Minutes (@60Minutes) October 1, 2023

Lewis said he learned of the amounts paid to celebrities while poring over internal company documents.

“It’s amazing what’s on the list,” Lewis told CBS.

The Washington Post has sought comment from Brady, Curry and David. Bankman-Fried declined to respond.

Celebrity endorsers such as David, Brady, his supermodel ex-wife Gisele Bundchen, Curry, Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence and retired NBA star Shaquille O’Neal have all been mentioned collectively by investors Litigation, seeking repayment.

Lewis said Brady sincerely “adores” Bankman-Fried.

“I think Tom Brady thinks he’s a very interesting guy,” the author said. “(Brady) likes to hear what he has to say.”

“And (Bankman-Fried) really likes Tom Brady,” Lewis said, adding that Bankman-Fried “doesn’t feel like a real sports star.”

“It’s fun to watch that dynamic,” Lewis said of the Brady-Bankman-Fried relationship.

“These two actually get along really well,” Lewis said, adding: “It’s like the nerd and the quarterback in the class.”

“The quarterback liked him for some reason, and he liked the quarterback for some reason.”

Lewis called Bankman-Fried “the nerd of all nerds.”

“Not even nerds would hang out with this nerd, he’s such a nerd,” the author said.

Lewis said Bankman-Fried has “become toxic” since the FTX collapse.

“No one wanted to talk to him,” the author told CBS. “He has no friends.”