Shaquille O’Neal can’t catch a break from the aftermath of collapses in the NFT (Non-Fungible Tokens) and cryptocurrency markets in recent years. After the FTX case, now he will have to defend himself against some of the allegations in the Astrals NFT case, which includes the promotion of unregistered securities by Shaq.
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As Coin Desk reported, the documents in the Astrals NFT class action lawsuit were filed on Friday, and they listed Shaq’s name as one of the promoters of the platform. The one good thing is that the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, Miami Division, dismissed the allegation that Diesel was a “control person.” (someone who exercised actual power or control.)
But the court mentioned that Shaq‘s involvement in that project falls under the definition of a “seller”. So he will have to defend himself against the standing allegations.
As one of the most popular celebrities in the world, Shaq endorses a lot of products and brands. He also has a big presence on social media which is why big companies approach him to collaborate for their project.
The case of Astrals NFT started on the same note as it was a huge trend all over the world for a few years, but soon, things went wrong in the market. The entire industry was in trouble when the FTX, a Bahamas-based cryptocurrency exchange, collapsed in November 2022. The investors were scared about losing their money in that collapse and the panic led to other crypto platforms coming under pressure.
However, as a promoter of the Astrals NFT, Shaq sent a GIF to the community Discord which has now become a problem for him. The NBA legend, in order to show support for the platform, sent a GIF of Leonardo DiCaprio’s ‘Wolf of Wall Street’ which read, “I’m not fuc**ng leaving.”
This instance has been mentioned in the court documents along with the allegation that Shaq left the company immediately after that and “the value of Astrals financial products plummeted.”
Diesel’s name was also involved in the class action lawsuit that was filed against the now-bankrupt platform, FTX. Initially, he ducked being served in the FTX lawsuit for months which was a big topic of discussion on the internet at the time. The cat-and-mouse chase came to an end after the lawyers figured out the perfect place to serve him.
The lawyers tracked him down as he was doing his broadcasting duties during Game 4 between the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat and served him the papers on the TV set. In that case, Shaq claimed that he was simply a spokesperson, which is why he shouldn’t be held responsible. It’ll be interesting to see what Shaq’s team of lawyers come up with this time and how they close the case.
