FILE PHOTO: Naomi Osaka of Japan arrives for the singles draw ceremony of the WTA Tennis Finals in Singapore October 19, 2018. REUTERS/Edgar Su
March 21, 2022
(Reuters) – Tennis star Naomi Osaka has taken an equity stake in FTX and will be receiving compensation in crypto, the Bahamas-based cryptocurrency exchange, one of the most valuable startups in the world, said on Monday.
The four-time Grand Slam winner signed a long-term partnership agreement with FTX, as part of which Osaka will be focused on bringing women onto its crypto platform and will play an active role in directing and producing content.
FTX, the owner and operator of crypto platform FTX.com, has been rapidly raising capital over the past year. SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2 invested $400 million in the company in January, a major funding that catapulted FTX’s valuation to $32 billion.
Prior to her investment in FTX, Osaka backed salad chain Sweetgreen Inc that was listed in New York last year. She is also an adviser to a special purpose acquisition company, Disruptive Acquisition Corporation I, along with other well-known athletes such as Patrick Mahomes and Robert Lewandowski.
(Reporting by Sohini Podder in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)
