FTX bankruptcy hits Bay Area venture capital firms — and the Warriors, Steph Curry and UC Berkeley

Venerable venture capital firm Sequoia Capital
told limited partners Wednesday
that it considered its roughly $210 million FTX investment across two funds now worthless “based on our current understanding.” The Menlo Park firm said FTX made up less than 3% of the capital in its Global Growth Fund III, which has gained $7.5 billion, and less than 1% of its SCGE Fund. Sequoia also deleted a
glowing profile of Bankman-Fried
from its website.

San Francisco venture capital firm Paradigm, which focuses on cryptocurrency, invested $278 million in FTX and also expects the entire amount to be lost,
according to Axios.

Other major investors include the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, Tiger Global Management and Softbank.

In an unusual arrangement, Bankman-Fried reportedly invested more than $500 million in venture capital firms’ funds as well, including at Sequoia and Paradigm,
the Information reported.

FTX also spent billions on sports sponsorships and marketing, including with major teams in the Bay Area.

The Golden State Warriors and FTX’s U.S. division
partnered last year
to sell
non-fungible tokens,
the digital collectibles that the team has previously used to commemorate championships. As part of the deal, the FTX logo also appears at games held by the Santa Cruz Warriors, the NBA team’s G League affiliate. The Warriors declined to comment.

Warriors star Steph Curry became an FTX ambassador last year, promoting the company in advertisements in exchange for a payment and undisclosed equity stake. In a
video ad
released this year, Curry highlighted his own unfamiliarity with crypto and claimed FTX was a safe way to invest.

“I’m not an expert, and I don’t need to be. With FTX, I have everything I need to buy, sell and trade crypto safely,” he said in the video.

Last year, FTX signed a
$17.5 million sponsorship agreement
with UC Berkeley for naming rights at California Memorial Stadium, with the money to be paid in bitcoin. The venue is now FTX Field at California Memorial Stadium.

“FTX is a great partner for Cal Athletics. We are monitoring the evolving business situation with FTX and will determine any next steps if they become warranted,” a campus spokesperson said.

Other prominent athletes signed on with FTX. Football legend Tom Brady and tennis Olympian Naomi Osaki are also ambassadors. And in 2021, the home of the Miami Heat was renamed FTX Arena in a $135 million deal. The Heat said the deal was terminated late Friday.