Shaquille O’Neal has come to an agreement with investors who allege losses stemming from the downfall of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX, as indicated in a filing on April 23 in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
The specific sum of the settlement is kept private, with details anticipated to be revealed once investors formally seek preliminary court endorsement, according to judicial documents.
O’Neal and various other celebrities and athletes have been accused of endorsing FTX and supposedly exacerbating investor losses by supporting the now-defunct exchange.
This case is part of an extensive multidistrict litigation initiative, where investors are pursuing up to $21 billion in compensation from FTX insiders, advisors, and promoters, considerably surpassing the $9.2 billion accessible through bankruptcy processes.
Other celebrities facing similar legal issues for their involvement with FTX include NFL quarterback Tom Brady, supermodel Gisele Bündchen, billionaire investor Kevin O’Leary, former NBA athlete Udonis Haslem, David Ortiz, Naomi Osaka, among others.
Significantly, investors from FTX experienced difficulties in delivering legal documents to O’Neal during the initial phases of the litigation concerning his promotion of the fallen exchange.
Related: FTX previous executives and promoters to settle class-action lawsuit for $1.3M
O’Neal completes $11 million settlement regarding Astrals NFT initiative
The agreement with FTX investors comes as O’Neal recently consented to pay $11 million to settle a class-action lawsuit related to his participation in the Solana-based Astrals NFT project.
In May 2023, O’Neal was served with the Astral NFT lawsuit while attending an NBA match at Miami’s Kaseya Center, previously known as the FTX Arena. The class-action lawsuit concerned his endorsement of the Astrals NFT project, claiming that the NFTs endorsed by O’Neal were unregistered securities.
In August 2024, a federal judge in Miami decided that O’Neal would have to defend against some of the accusations raised in the case.
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