Idris Elba is the Latest Celebrity to Jump on the Crypto Bandwagon
Dec. 11 2023, Published 1:39 p.m. ET
British actor Idris Elba has partnered with the Stellar Development Foundation to explore blockchain's potential for solving financial inclusion issues in West Africa. Announced in October, this move signifies the transformation from a celebrity endorsement to a genuine business partnership.
Elba envisions cryptocurrency-based financial services as a transformative shift in the region, much like the transition from physical mail to email. His substantial influence could bridge the gap between mainstream culture and cryptocurrency, aligning with Stellar's mission of expanding its user base and promoting financial inclusion.
“I’m not pushing a crypto coin, or any of that. I’m pushing the idea that there’s a different way to think about [financial inclusion],” said Elba. “My influence is important and I don’t want to use it for the wrong thing.”
Despite the current turmoils in the crypto market, Elba maintains his curiosity about blockchain technology's potential. His partnership with Stellar emphasizes that crypto could provide digital financial addresses for people in the region, comparing it to the transition from physical mail to email.
Elba is committed to using his influence responsibly, which he believes some other celebrities overlooked. In 2021, crypto businesses spent heavily on celebrity endorsements and NFTs, while some celebrities launched their own NFTs and cryptocurrencies, but Elba refrained from participating, feeling uncomfortable with the trend, a decision that turned out to be wise.
The Crypto Mayhem
The crypto industry has faced significant challenges in the past 18 months. Widely known as the “Crypto Winter,” the period is marked by the Terra Luna stablecoin's collapse and subsequent failures of prominent crypto businesses.
FTX, whose founder Sam Bankman-Fried is facing fraud charges, is, of course, the main highlight. Celebrities endorsing its services now face lawsuits and regulatory scrutiny. Bankman-Fried had recruited celebrities such as Tom Brady, Shaquille O’Neal, Gisele Bündchen, and Larry David.
During the trial, jurors were presented with a photo, and Nishad Singh, who was previously the lead engineer at FTX, testified about Bankman-Fried's extravagant spending on celebrity endorsements. This highlights the extensive resources and efforts that were directed toward recruiting celebrities to endorse SBF's crypto-related ventures.
Michael Kives, a former Hollywood agent, played a pivotal role in connecting these celebrities with the crypto industry, helping build the FTX empire through influential connections like Orlando Bloom, Katy Perry, and Leonardo DiCaprio. Even Taylor Swift was associated with SBF through a sponsorship deal that FTX eventually withdrew from.
The FTX mayhem is only the tip of the iceberg. Earlier in March, the federal regulators charged eight celebrities, including Jake Paul, Ne-Yo, Akon, and Lindsay Lohan, with illegally promoting cryptocurrencies Tronix (TRX) and BitTorrent (BTT) without disclosing their financial compensation.
This charge also implicated crypto entrepreneur Justin Sun and his companies, Tron Foundation Limited, BitTorrent Foundation Ltd., and Rainberry Inc., in the unregistered sale of crypto asset securities and market manipulation through "wash trading."
According to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), six of these celebrities, excluding Soulja Boy and Austin Mahone, have agreed to pay a total of over $400,000 to settle the charges without admitting or denying the findings.
In October 2022, the SEC also charged celebrity Kim Kardashian in a similar case. She was found to be promoting a cryptocurrency on Instagram without disclosing her $250,000 payment from the company, EthereumMax.
NFT and Crypto Gambling
Opting for a less risky path, some celebrities decided to embrace NFT. Snoop Dogg, a prominent figure in the NFT space, has bought high-end NFT art and released his own NFT collections on OpenSea, such as "A Journey with the Dogg." He's also announced plans to transform Death Row Records into an NFT music label.
Paris Hilton launched her NFT collection "Planet Paris" on Nifty Gateway, featuring pieces like "Hummingbird in My Metaverse" and "Iconic Crypto Queen," which sold for $1.11 million. Hilton believes in NFTs' potential for artists and creators in terms of value creation, democratization of art, and fan collaborations in metaverses.
Proving age does not matter, two-time Oscar winner Robert De Niro also made headlines with an NFT collection, "Motion," which interacted with Ethereum's real-time price fluctuations.
NFT is also celebrated among the sportsmen. Legendary skateboarder Tony Hawk has combined crypto and sports to create NFT value with "The Last Trick Skateboard" collection, featuring digital replicas of skateboards used in his iconic tricks.
NBA superstar LeBron James ventured into the crypto industry with NFT collections and became an ambassador for Crypto.com. He launched "The Moment of Truth" NFT collection and aims to bring opportunities to his community through the partnership.
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Drake made a bigger bet by venturing into online gambling. Drake is known to have gambled a lot using cryptocurrencies, so it is not surprising that a crypto-gambling company eventually endorsed him. Through these platforms, players can make deposits or withdrawals using cryptocurrency, and they can also play any crash game inspired by crypto.
Crash gambling game is a popular type of crypto-based gambling. In this game, players place bets using cryptocurrencies, and their goal is to cash out before the multiplier crashes. Some popular titles are Plinko, Mines, and Aviator.
Plinko is a simple game with 99% RTP and the chance to win up to 100,000 credits. All you need to do is watch the ball drop down the set and land on certain prizes, just like the original game in the 80s TV show.
Meanwhile, Aviator has a 97% RTP, and you can control the volatility by choosing when to cash out as you watch the game progress before it crashes.
