American football star Trevor Lawrence is one of three celebrities who have agreed to settle after being named in an FTX class-action lawsuit.
Terms Of Settlement
According to a Bloomberg report, the NFL quarterback’s intention to settle was made known in court documents filed on September 15. However, the terms of the settlement weren’t disclosed. This isn’t unusual, as some settlement agreements are kept confidential to prevent either party from disclosing the terms of the document, which the other party may want to be kept a secret.
Lawrence was one of many celebrities who was sued in a class action suit by investors of the bankrupt crypto exchange FTX for their role in promoting the crypto exchange, which eventually led to the company’s former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) duping investors of their money.
It is not uncommon for such lawsuits to arise as endorsements of a crypto project (especially a failed one), as often landed these celebrities in hot water. For one, investors argue that these celebrities made misleading statements about the project’s legitimacy, which caused them to suffer financial loss.
In Lawrence’s case, he signed a long-term deal with FTX’s crypto portfolio tracking app Blockfolio. Although the terms of the deal were undisclosed at the time, Blockfolio revealed that it included a “significant signing bonus” that would be paid in cryptocurrency, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana.
The report also stated that YouTube influencers Kevin Paffrath and Tom Nash had agreed to settle in the class action suit against them. Paffrath and Nash had reportedly been paid to use their YouTube channels to promote the crypto exchange.
The lawyers representing the plaintiffs stated that in the court filing that they are “engaged in ongoing confidential, settlement discussions” with the other defendants named in the suit and that other settlements are imminent.
Other celebrities named in the class-action suit include Tom Brady, Gisele Bundchen, Stephen Curry, Shaquille O’Neal, Naomi Osaka, Udonis Haslem, Larry David, and Kevin O’Leary.
Lawrence Faces Another Lawsuit
Meanwhile, Lawrence faces another FTX-related lawsuit as the crypto exchange recently filed a case against the football player and some other celebrities as part of the company’s effort to recover promotional payments made to them.
According to the filing, FTX paid Lawrence $205,555 to promote the crypto exchange. FTX is also seeking to recover payments made to O’Leary, Osaka, David Ortiz, and even professional basketball team Golden State Warriors. Companies like GameStop, Fortune Media, and Coachella Music Festival, LLC are also named in the filing.
The highlight of this recovery plan is, however, the sum of $3,398,046, which FTX made to secure the naming rights of the professional basketball team Miami Heat’s arena. The stadium was renamed FTX Arena following this deal in 2021. It has since been changed to the ‘Kaseya Center’ following FTX’s collapse.
Featured image from Sporting News