Dallas Mavericks fans smoke against Mark Cuban over Voyager cryptocurrency bankruptcy
Dallas Mavericks fans are being burned because of the bankruptcy of the fateful crypto brokerage house Voyager Digital – and they are attacking the NBA team owner Mark Cuban for enticing them to invest in the company.
Voyager declared Chapter 11 late Tuesday, citing chaos in the crypto markets. The major crypto player had paid high interest rates on crypto deposits and was crushed when it tried to lend tokens at even higher prices. Most account holders will be hard pressed to get their money back, according to reports.
“Shame on Mark for collaborating with them,” a Mavericks fan wrote on Reddit, referring to the team’s billionaire owner and longtime “Shark Tank” investor.
“Thank you, Mr. Cuban. Get your fans to trust unstable exchanges. Brilliant, ‘smoked another user sarcastically.
“Another Cuban specialty,” wrote a third.
Cuban did not immediately respond to questions from The Post on Wednesday, including whether Mavs is now a Voyager creditor with bankruptcy claims.
On October 28 last year, the Mavericks announced a five-year partnership with Voyager that gave fans a $ 100 reward for trading crypto on Voyager for a limited time if they deposited $ 100 and traded for only $ 10. At the time, Cuban said the Voyager partnership would make cryptocurrency more accessible.
“We’ll find new ways to introduce Mavs fans to cryptocurrency and help them understand it,” Cuban said at the time. “You know, there’s a lot of hype, there’s a lot of discussion, but most people do not understand the basics behind it.”
Cuban had even held a press conference that day with Voyager boss Steve Ehrlich, where New York signing Knick Jalen Brunson, then a Maverick, asked: “If this is my first time entering crypto, what are some important things I need to know? ”
“Yes, you spend your money, so always be careful,” Cuban replied at the time. “But the other thing, look, it’s investment, stuff like Shiba Inu and Dogecoin, it’s not investment. But Voyager… this is a great way to learn, and it’s something you can do on your smartphone. You can start to get into this and save money, and that’s just a unique opportunity. “
Voyager’s share rose 9.5 percent on October 28 to around $ 17 per share. On Wednesday, it traded at 26 cents.
Large crypto exchanges took over sponsorship agreements in 2021 in an attempt to woo sports fans, many of whom were flush with cash in a tight labor market, fresh on the heels of generous government stimuli from the pandemic. Now, as The Post exclusively reported, crypto companies are dropping sports deals.
“These battles with crypto sponsors will cause all clubs to reconsider their sponsor’s risk profiles, especially for new industry categories,” Rick Allen, CEO of sports streaming consulting firm ViewLift, told The Post.
“I expect teams and leagues to re-check their agreements, especially for sponsors in cryptocurrencies, gambling, NFTs and other new categories where the lack of actual loss data made the risk guarantee more speculative,” Allen added.
In a Fortune article last month, Cuban said there will be winners and losers in crypto.
“In stocks and cryptocurrencies, you will see companies that were maintained by cheap, easy money – but that did not have valid business prospects – will disappear,” Cuban said. “As [Warren] Buffett says, “When the tide goes out, you get to see who swims naked.”
