When Matt Damon appeared in an advertisement for the cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com one year ago, it garnered attention and controversy. Many cryptocurrencies' prices have dramatically decreased since then. From a peak of $3 trillion in November 2021, the market capitalization of crypto assets has fallen below $1 trillion.
However, Damon is not the only famous person to have publicly endorsed cryptocurrency over the previous 12 months. After receiving a $1.26 million fine for promoting cryptocurrency on her Instagram last year without revealing payments from the issuer, Kim Kardashian made headlines this week.
Other celebrities started NFT art collections, collaborated with major cryptocurrency firms like FTX and Gemini, or bought NFT artwork from a well-known collection. Here is a historical performance analysis of NFT projects and cryptocurrencies with celebrity endorsements.
Matt Damon: In October 2021, Matt Damon made his debut in a Crypto.com advertisement. Since then, the price of bitcoin has decreased substantially, falling from about $60,000 in October 2021 to under $20,000 in October 2022, a decline of more than 60%. Damon's endorsement came at a time when Bitcoin's market cap was $1.14 trillion. It is currently $382 billion.
Reese Witherspoon: In March 2022, Reese Witherspoon tweeted about her non-fungible World of Women token. In order to promote the WoW line, Witherspoon's media outlet Hello Sunshine struck a relationship in February. The floor price of a WoW NFT peaked at 12.8 ETH, or approximately $17,135, at the time of Witherspoon's tweet. The floor price is the cheapest amount at which an NFT from a specific collection can be purchased. At the time of publication, the collection's floor price is 2.35 ETH, or about $3000, a decrease of more than 80%.
A request for comment from Hello Sunshine was not answered.
Gwyneth Paltrow: At the end of January, Gwyneth Paltrow declared her intention to join the Bored Ape Yacht Club, a collection of non-fungible token artwork. 88 ETH, or about $118,000, served as the floor price. The floor price of the collection reached its highest point at the end of April, reaching 144.9 ETH, or $195,000. The floor price is at $100,000 or 76 ETH, an 18% drop.
Requests for comment made with Paltrow's Goop and My BFF received no answer right away.
Charli D'Amelio: In May 2021, the family's Instagram page featured a Bitcoin reference thanks to a collaboration between Gemini and the TikTok star, who was formerly one of the most popular users on the network. When compared to its current price of $20,000, Bitcoin's average closing price at the time was $46,620, a decline of nearly 55%.
An inquiry for comment was not answered by D'Amelio's agent.
Kourtney Kardashian: On her Instagram feed, which at the time had 210 million followers, Kardashian initially advertised a cryptocurrency token called EthereumMAX in June 2021. This behaviour earned her a punishment from the SEC. On June 12, the unrelated cryptocurrency EthereumMAX traded at 0.00000023. At the time of reporting, the price was 0.000000005973, a decrease of more than 95%.
A request for response from Kardashian's lawyer went unanswered.
Tom Brady: In June 2021, Tom Brady partnered with the cryptocurrency exchange FTX. Other sportsmen have also partnered with FTX, including Steph Curry and Naomi Osaka. The closing price of Bitcoin was $35,127 in June 2021 as opposed to about $20,000 right now, a 43% decline.
A request for comment from FTX was not immediately complied with.
Mike Tyson: In August 2021, Mike Tyson published an NFT collection. According to data from OpenSea, the average price of an NFT from the collection was 0.49 ETH at the time of release. The price of the collection peaked in September 2021 at 14.11 ETH. The average price is currently indicated as 0.1 ETH, a 75% decrease from when it first launched.
Requests for comment from Mike Tyson's agent were not answered.
Kevin M. Williams, financial adviser representative at Full Life Financial Planning in Pembroke, Massachusetts, said that while it's not always the case that information given by a celebrity or influencer is "bad counsel or flat out inaccurate," he wouldn't advise his clients to rely on it.
"The amount [celebrities] are investing is probably a very modest percentage of their overall portfolio. Tom Brady can afford to lose a lot of money if he places a terrible wager on Ethereum. As a Boston sports fan, I am aware of how much he despises losing anything. Can a typical investor?" said he.
Crypto-based projects are even less reliable because the environment is "changing by the hour," according to Williams.
According to Catherine Valega, a wealth consultant with Green Bee Advisory in Boston, it's essential to check at credentials when seeking financial advice online, such as Chartered Financial Analyst and Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst.
Given that they don't have knowledge of your specific financial circumstances, this does not always guarantee you excellent financial advice. But if nothing else, Valega added, "it at least gives some reassurance that they have studied, trained, or worked in the area they are advising on.
