Shaquille O’Neal may have tried to avoid being served legal papers for a class-action lawsuit brought against FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried and a host of celebrity spokespeople. But here is one crypto lawsuit he’s settled.
The NBA Hall of Famer has agreed to pay $11 million to settle a class-action lawsuit involving the promotion of Astrals NFTs, AXIOS reported. The settlement, which is pending court approval, will compensate investors who suffered financial losses linked to these ventures.
Here’s What Went Down
The lawsuit centered on O’Neal’s endorsement of the Astrals NFT collection, a project featuring 10,000 digital collectibles designed for a virtual gaming world. Investors alleged that the former Los Angeles Lakers star’s celebrity status was used to market the assets, which later dropped in value.
In August 2023, a Miami federal court judge ruled that the Astrals NFT plaintiffs had sufficient evidence to argue that O’Neal acted as a “seller” of the NFTs.
NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, are unique digital assets that represent ownership or proof of authenticity for a specific item or piece of content, typically on a blockchain, such as Ethereum. Unlike cryptocurrencies like bitcoin or ethereum, which are fungible and interchangeable, NFTs are non-fungible, meaning each one is distinct and cannot be replaced with an identical item.
Attorney Adam Moskowitz, who represented the plaintiffs, praised O’Neal for stepping up to resolve the case. “Shaq personally deserves credit for helping victims of these failed platforms. His decision to settle is a significant step toward resolution,” Moskowitz said in a press statement, according to Coin Telegraph.
The $11 million payout will cover investor losses and attorneys’ fees, potentially marking the end of O’Neal’s legal entanglements with the Astrals NFT project. This settlement comes as NFTs show signs of market recovery, with October 2024 sales volumes climbing to $356 million, an 18 percent increase from the previous month, Coin Telegraph reported.
O’Neal reportedly is also in the process of resolving the separate FTX suit more than a year after he was served with it while at a May 2023 NBA game in Miami.
