NEW YORK — Portuguese soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo has been hit with class-action lawsuit searching for at the least $1 billion in damages for his function in selling cryptocurrency-related “non-fungible tokens,” or NFTs, issued by the beleaguered cryptocurrency trade Binance.

The lawsuit filed in federal court docket within the Southern District of Florida Monday alleges that Ronaldo‘s promotion of Binance was “deceptive and unlawful.” Binance‘s partnership with high-profile figures like Ronaldo, the plaintiffs declare, led them into pricey and unsafe investments.

“Evidence now reveals that Binance’s fraud was only able to reach such heights through the offer and sale of unregistered securities, with the willing help and assistance of some of the wealthiest, powerful and recognized organizations and celebrities across the globe-just like Defendant Ronaldo,” the swimsuit reads.

Representatives for Ronaldo declined to remark Thursday. Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency trade, didn't instantly return requests for assertion from The Associated Press.

Ronaldo launched his inaugural NFT “CR7” assortment with Binance in November of final yr, forward of the 2022 World Cup. The NFTs - which had beginning costs starting from the equal of about $77 to $10,000 - featured seven animated statues depicting Ronaldo from iconic moments in his life, from bicycle-kick targets to his childhood in Portugal.

Monday’s swimsuit says that the promotional efforts of Ronaldo‘s Binance partnership were “incredibly successful” - alleging a 500% increase in online searches using the keyword “Binance” after the soccer star’s NFTs was introduced. The assortment’s premium-level NFTs bought out inside the first week, the swimsuit claims.

The swimsuit additionally alleges that Ronaldo ought to’ve disclosed how a lot Binance has paid him for the partnership. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission beforehand famous that federal regulation requires celebrities to publicly disclose how a lot they’re getting paid to advertise securities, together with crypto belongings.

NFTs are extraordinary digital pictures with an hooked up model quantity which were added to a cryptocurrency blockchain, a course of designed to make them “unique” collectibles. NFTs loved a short increase, however have since largely collapsed in worth because the crypto trade has been marred by scandals and market meltdowns.

Over the summer season, Binance was accused of working as an unregistered securities trade and violating a slew of U.S. securities legal guidelines in a lawsuit from regulators. The crypto trade agreed final week to pay a roughly $4 billion settlement and its founder Changpeng Zhao stepped down as CEO and pleaded responsible to a felony associated to his failure to forestall cash laundering on the platform.

This week’s lawsuit in opposition to Ronaldo isn’t the primary time {that a} movie star has confronted litigation over crypto promotions. Last yr, for instance, a bunch of Hollywood and sports stars - together with Larry David and Tom Brady - had been named as defendants in a class-action swimsuit in opposition to FTX, which was the second-largest crypto trade earlier than it collapsed in November 2022. The swimsuit argued that the celebrities’ standing made them culpable for selling FTX’s failed enterprise mannequin.

Ronaldo is likely one of the most recognizable and wealthiest athletes on the planet. He leads his house nation Portugal’s nationwide workforce and has performed for the Spanish workforce Real Madrid, the Italian membership Juventus and Manchester United in England. He now performs for the Saudi Arabian skilled workforce Al Nassr.

Ronaldo has continued to advertise Binance on his official web site and social media platforms. Most just lately, on X (the platform previously often called Twitter) Ronaldo reposted a Binance video and wrote that he was “Cooking something up” with the crypto trade on Tuesday.

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