NEW YORK (AP) — Portuguese soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo is hit with a class-action lawsuit for promoting cryptocurrency-related “non-fungible tokens” (NFTs) issued by a troubled cryptocurrency exchange. , seeking at least $1 billion in compensation from Binance.
The lawsuit, filed Monday in federal court in the Southern District of Florida, calls Ronaldo’s promotion of Binance “deceptive and unlawful.” The plaintiffs allege that Binance’s partnership with high-profile figures such as Ronaldo led them to make costly and unsafe investments.
“Evidence now shows that Binance’s fraud was only able to reach such a high level through the issuance and sale of unregistered securities with the voluntary help and assistance of some of the richest, most powerful and well-known organizations and celebrities in the world — — like defendant Ronaldo, the lawsuit reads.
Ronaldo’s representatives declined to comment Thursday. Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, did not immediately respond to a request for a statement from The Associated Press.
Last November, ahead of the 2022 World Cup, Ronaldo launched his first NFT “CR7” series with Binance. The NFTs, which range in price from the equivalent of $77 to $10,000, feature seven animated statues depicting iconic moments of Ronaldo’s life, from kicking a ball around on a bicycle to his childhood in Portugal.
Monday’s lawsuit claims that Ronaldo’s promotional efforts for his partnership with Binance were “extremely successful” – claiming that online searches using the keyword “Binance” increased by 500% after the soccer star’s NFT was announced. The lawsuit alleges that the series of premium NFTs sold out within the first week.
Since then, Ronaldo has continued to promote Binance on its official website and social media platforms.Recently, Ronaldo was on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) retweeted the Binance video and wrote He was “doing some stuff” with cryptocurrency exchanges on Tuesday.
NFTs are ordinary digital images with a version number attached that have been added to the cryptocurrency blockchain, a process designed to make them “unique” collectibles. NFTs experienced a brief boom but have since seen their value plummet as the crypto industry has been rocked by scandals and market crashes.
This summer, Binance was accused in a lawsuit from regulators of operating as an unregistered securities exchange and violating a range of U.S. securities laws. The cryptocurrency exchange agreed last week to pay a settlement of about $4 billion, and its founder, Changpeng Zhao, resigned as CEO and pleaded guilty to felony charges related to his failure to prevent money laundering on the platform.
This week’s lawsuit against Ronaldo is not the first time a celebrity has faced lawsuits over cryptocurrency promotions. Last year, numerous Hollywood and sports stars, including Larry David and Tom Brady, were named as defendants in a class-action lawsuit against FTX, which before its collapse in November 2022 The second largest cryptocurrency exchange. The lawsuit alleges that the celebrities’ status made them guilty of promoting FTX’s failed business model.
Ronaldo is one of the most famous and richest athletes in the world. He leads the national team of his native Portugal and has played for Real Madrid in Spain, Juventus in Italy and Manchester United in England. He currently plays for Saudi Arabian professional team Al Nassr.