NFL And YouTube Stars Reach Settlement in FTX Class-Action Lawsuit – NFL quarterback Trevor Lawrence, along with prominent YouTube influencers Kevin Paffrath and Tom Nash, have reportedly reached an agreement to settle a lawsuit. This legal dispute revolved around allegations of insufficient disclosure of compensation related to their endorsements for the now-defunct cryptocurrency exchange FTX.
According to a Bloomberg report published on September 16, these three well-known figures have indeed come to terms, although the specifics of the settlement remain undisclosed. Among the high-profile individuals caught up in the class-action lawsuit, Lawrence, Paffrath, and Nash appear to be the first to resolve their legal issues.
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Notably, there are other notable celebrity defendants in this lawsuit, including Tom Brady, Gisele Bündchen, Kevin O’Leary, Shaquille O’Neal, Naomi Osaka, and David Ortiz. They too have faced allegations related to their involvement with FTX and its promotion. Meanwhile, Paffrath and Nash are among a group of eight YouTubers accused of failing to adequately disclose their compensation in connection with FTX.
The remaining six individuals in this group are Graham Stephan, Andrei Jikh, Jaspreet Singh, Brian Jung, Jeremy Lefebvre, and Erika Kullberg. It’s worth noting that the talent management company responsible for overseeing FTX’s promotion, Creators Agency, is also named as a party in this lawsuit.
Furthermore, recent court filings on September 11 revealed that FTX is exploring ways to recover the substantial sums it paid to celebrity athletes and sports teams who endorsed the cryptocurrency exchange before its insolvency in November 2022. Trevor Lawrence received $205,555, Shaquille O’Neal was compensated approximately $750,000, and Kevin O’Leary topped the list with a fee of $2,348,338, according to these filings.
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The class-action lawsuit, initially filed on March 15, alleged that the influencers failed to adequately convey the true nature of their FTX promotions, which were, in reality, paid content rather than authentic endorsements rooted in genuine interest. “Though FTX paid Defendants handsomely to push its brand and encourage their followers to invest, Defendants did not disclose the nature and scope of their sponsorships and/or endorsement deals, payments and compensation, nor conduct adequate (if any) due diligence.”
