NBA Player Put Almost $70M In 50 Banks To Protect His Coins From The FDIC

The careful, watchful eye of NBA player Giannis Antetokounmpo made him break his money into several different banking institutions because he learned that banks only insured up to $250,000 per account. The Greek-born athlete did not want to lose his money for any reason. However, his mindset changed when the co-owner of the Milwaukee Bucks advised him to invest his money instead.

According to Business Insider, when the talented basketball player arrived in the United States 10 years ago, he recalled going to a bank to open an account and questioning whether his money was safe. He recently told Bloomberg, “I had no money growing up, so I asked them, ‘Is my money safe?'” he stated. After discovering the maximum limit his funds would be secured, he opened separate accounts at “five, six, seven” banks.

Marc Lasry, a billionaire who co-owns the Milwaukee Bucks, talked about advising the young player while speaking at the 2022 Bloomberg Wealth Summit.

“I’m like, ‘Giannis, you can’t be having accounts at 50 different banks,” Lasry said. “Let me tell you something, if JPMorgan goes under, your little dinky banks are going to go under too. Let me explain what you should buy; you should buy US Treasuries; you should buy this…'”

Antetokounmpo has reason to be so protective over the funds he has earned. Forbes listed him as No.10 on the world’s highest-paid athletes list this year. While earning an estimated $81 million, he came in as the fourth highest-earning NBA player, just below LeBron James’ $119.5 million, Steph Curry‘s $100.4 million, and Kevin Durant’s $89.1 million.

Due to the advice from Lasry and other trusted advisers, he has taken the investment route regarding his financial gains. He told Bloomberg that he had expanded his portfolio since the start of the coronavirus pandemic and will continue to do so.