Taylor Swift was in talks to sign a $100 million deal with crypto’s latest anti-hero: FT

Turns out FTX’s list of celebrity sponsors had a blank space, following a courtship of pop darling Taylor Swift’s team. 

Bankrupt crypto exchange FTX reached the late stages of a sponsorship deal with the superstar, according to a report from the Financial Times. The deal was reportedly worth more than $100 million, with talks ending in the spring.

The report also cites sources that refute the claims that Swift would have signed an endorsement deal with the exchange.

“Taylor would not, and did not, agree to an endorsement deal. The discussion was around a potential tour sponsorship that did not happen,” a source told the FT. 

Republic Records, Swift’s label and a division of Universal Music, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Block. The FT said former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried and Swift’s representatives declined to comment. 

Fan of ‘Tay Tay’

Bankman-Fried is said to have favored the deal, as he’s a fan of “Tay Tay,” according to the report. The deal might have included a ticketing agreement involving NFTs, according to the FT’s sources. Claire Watanabe, a senior executive in FTX’s business development team, was reportedly pushing the deal behind the scenes. 

FTX filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Nov. 11 as a severe liquidity crisis brought on by revelations about its balance sheet pushed FTX toward insolvency. Binance had signed a letter of intent that could have led to an acquisition, but in the end, they passed on the deal, citing due diligence concerns.

Tom Brady, Gisele Bundchen, Steph Curry and Larry David, among others, face a class action lawsuit over their sponsorship of the exchange. The class action was filed by attorneys David Boies and Adam Moskowitz in Florida. 

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