Adidas ends Ye deal over hate speech

The German company said that is does not tolerate anti-Semitism or any sort of hate speech

Adidas ended its partnership with the rapper and fashion designer Kanye West, now known as Ye. The move is the result of a series of anti-semitic remarks made by the artist. This caused him to be knocked off the Forbes list of the world’s billionaires. According to the Forbes magazine the end of the deal meant Ye's net worth shrank to $400 million. The magazine valued his share of the Adidas partnership at $1.5 billion. Adidas has put the tie-up, which has produced several hot-selling Yeezy branded sneakers, under review this month.

The German company said that is does not tolerate anti-Semitism  or any sort of hate speech. It further added that Ye’s recent comments are dangerous and hateful and cannot be accepted. The majority of Ye’s wealth comes from his music, cash and real estate. He also has a 5% stake in ex-wife Kim Kardashian’s shape wear firm, Skims, Forbes said. Adidas also stands to suffer losses, as ending of the partnership and production of Yeezy will have a "short-term negative impact" of up to 250 million euros ($248.90 million) on net income this year, the company said.