Football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is facing a $1 billion class-action lawsuit related to his business relationship with cryptocurrency exchange Binance.
The lawsuit, filed on November 28 in the District Court for the Southern District of Florida in Miami, accuses Ronaldo of “coordinating with Binance to promote, assist and/or actively participate in the issuance and sale of unregistered securities.” “
The action is aimed at representing “consumers who purchased unregistered securities offered or sold by Binance.” The lead plaintiff was identified as California resident Michael Sizemore, who allegedly purchased unregistered Binance securities “after being exposed to some or all of Defendants’ misrepresentations and omissions regarding the Binance platform.”
“Mr. Ronaldo’s promotions solicited or assisted Binance in soliciting investments in unregistered securities by encouraging his millions of followers, fans and supporters to invest in the Binance platform,” the legal filing states.
The lawsuit could add to Binance’s growing list of legal problems. In June, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission sued Binance, the operating company of Binance.US, and its founder Changpeng Zhao “CZ” for violating federal securities laws. Last week, in a separate case, Binance agreed to pay $4.3 billion to resolve charges from U.S. prosecutors for alleged violations of sanctions and remittance laws.
He is accused of “soliciting investment in unregistered securities by encouraging millions of followers, fans and supporters to invest in the Binance platform.”
“Mr. Ronaldo’s promotions were posted on public websites, television and social media accounts accessible to plaintiffs throughout the country, including in Florida,” the lawsuit states. “It is understood and believed that in exchange for his services, Mr. Ronaldo received a Significant total compensation, which may include compensation in the form of digital assets transferred through the Binance platform.”
The lawsuit cites previous SEC warnings that virtual tokens may be securities and that celebrities must disclose when they are paid to promote securities.
CoinDesk requested comment via the email address Cristianronaldo.com but did not immediately receive a reply.
Update (December 1, 19:05 UTC): Adding that CoinDesk has contacted Ronaldo’s representatives for comment