As if news of Binance‘s former CEO Changpeng Zhao resigning and facing criminal charges wasn’t enough, football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is being sued in Florida for advertising this platform.
According to the lawsuit, Michael Sizemore, Mikey Vongdara, and Gordon Lewis allege they experienced financial losses due to Ronaldo’s promotion of the exchange. The platform is accused of failing to implement adequate anti-money laundering measures. Additionally, the exchange is currently facing a demand from US authorities to pay $4.3 billion in settlements.
Charges consist of “promotion, assisting, and/or actively participating in the offer and sale of unregistered securities in coordination with Binance.“
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Partnership between Ronaldo and Binance
In 2022, the football player established a long-term collaboration with the exchange. Under the partnership, Ronaldo was to endorse a set of his non-fungible tokens (NFT).
The legal document also states that individuals enrolled in the NFT collection allege a higher likelihood of using the exchange for various activities, including acquiring unregistered securities. These unregistered securities encompass the BNB token and the exchange’s yield programs.
The filing states, “Ronaldo’s promotions solicited or assisted Binance in soliciting investments in unregistered securities by encouraging his millions of followers, fans, and supporters to invest with the Binance platform.“
Additional allegations
As per the legal complaint, Ronaldo is accused of being aware or should have been aware of “Binance selling unregistered crypto securities.” The lawsuit also asserts that the footballer could have sought external advice, given his investment experience and substantial resources.
Furthermore, the lawsuit references the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) caution to celebrities about disclosing payments for endorsing cryptocurrencies. The plaintiffs argue that Ronaldo failed to disclose payments received from Binance.
How and whether this lawsuit saga will reflect on Binance remains to be seen. Right now, we are witnessing an increased amount of news that is uncovering Binances’ past wrongdoings.
