Portuguese striker Cristiano Ronaldois going through some troubling hours as a class action lawsuit in the US accuses him of promoting fraud Binance is the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world.
The plaintiffs allege that his support caused them to make investments at a loss.
They are seeking damages in “an amount in excess of” $1 billion.
How the alliance between Cristiano Ronaldo and Binance came about
In 2022, Binance announced an alliance with the Portuguese star to promote non-fungible tokens (NFTs) dubbed Cr7, the brand of former Real Madrid.
In a social media video announcing the partnership, Ronaldo told potential investors that “we are going to change the NFT game and take football to the next level.”
The cheapest NFT in the collection was worth $77 when it went on sale in November 2022, but a year later it was worth about $1.
The plaintiffs claim that Cristiano Ronaldo’s promotion of Binance led to a “500% increase in search queries” for the Cayman Islands-registered cryptocurrency exchange.
They also say it has encouraged people to use the company to invest in what they call “unregistered securities,” such as Binance’s BNB cryptocurrency.
SEC Chairman Gary Gensler said celebrities should “disclose to the public who and how much they are paid to promote securities investments.”
“When celebrities endorse investment opportunities, including cryptocurrency securities, investors should be careful to find out whether the investment is suitable for them, and they should know why the celebrities are giving such endorsement,” he said.
Source: Digital Trends
I am Garth Carter and I work at Gadget Onus. I have specialized in writing for the Hot News section, focusing on topics that are trending and highly relevant to readers. My passion is to present news stories accurately, in an engaging manner that captures the attention of my audience.
