Cristiano Ronaldo hit with $1b Lawsuit over Binance Ads

Cristiano Ronaldo faces a class action lawsuit in the United States over his promotion of Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world.

According to the plaintiffs. his endorsement resulted in loss-making investments.

They are seeking damages of “a sum exceeding” $1 billion.

In November 2022, Binance announced the ‘CR7’ collection of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in partnership with the star, which he said would reward fans “for all the years of support”.

Announcing the partnership, Ronaldo told would-be investors “we are going to change the NFT game and take football to the next level”.

When it went on sale in November 2022, the cheapest NFT from the collection was priced at $77. But a year later, it was priced at around $1.

The claimants say Ronaldo’s promotion of Binance led to a “500% increase in searches” for the crypto exchange, which is registered in the Cayman Islands.

It is also alleged that the adverts led people to use the firm to invest in what they call “unregistered securities”, such as Binance’s BNB cryptocurrency.

According to the US Securities and Exchanges (SEC), these assets can be considered securities, therefore, celebrities endorsing them must follow US law.

In the past, SEC chair Gary Gensler said celebrities must “disclose to the public from whom and how much you are getting paid to promote investment in securities”.

He said: “When celebrities endorse investment opportunities, including crypto-asset securities, investors should be careful to research if the investments are right for them, and they should know why celebrities are making those endorsements.”

In the lawsuit, it is alleged that Ronaldo should have disclosed how much he was being paid but did not.

Nigel Green, CEO of The deVere Group, said the problems at the centre of the case go further than just one footballer.

He said: “It is crucial to recognise that blaming Ronaldo alone oversimplifies a complex issue.

“Instead, attention should also be directed towards global regulators who have been slow to establish clear guidelines for this evolving financial landscape.”

Cristiano Ronaldo and Binance are set to work together again in the future.

A recent social media post from the Portuguese star teased they are “cooking something up”.

The class action lawsuit comes a week after the US Justice Department told Binance to pay $4.3 billion in penalties and forfeitures.

Binance was accused of helping users bypass sanctions around the world and of making it easy for criminals to move money.

After admitting to money laundering violations, Binance’s chief executive Changpeng Zhao resigned.

Major League Baseball, Formula 1 and Mercedes-Benz also face class action lawsuits filed on the same day over their promotion of failed crypto exchange FTX.