NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal, better known as Shaq, is facing legal trouble over his involvement in the Astrals non-fungible token (NFT) project. A U.S. court has ruled that O’Neal will have to defend himself against allegations of promoting unregistered securities.
The Astrals project, featuring 10,000 NFT 3D avatars and a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) for innovative projects, is at the heart of the lawsuit. The plaintiffs claim that O’Neal, who was the public face of Astrals, encouraged investors to participate in the project despite potential regulatory concerns surrounding the sale of unregistered securities.
They further allege that O’Neal abandoned the project after the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, leading to a significant drop in the value of Astrals’ financial products. This abandonment, they claim, left investors with substantial losses.
The lawsuit, which has been ongoing for over a year, initially accused O’Neal of being a “control person” in the project, a claim the court dismissed. However, the court upheld the allegation that Astrals sold unregistered securities, meaning O’Neal will still be required to defend himself in court.
This isn’t the first time O’Neal has faced legal scrutiny regarding his involvement in cryptocurrency. He was previously sued over promoting FTX, the trading platform that went bankrupt in late 2022. O’Neal stated that he was simply a paid spokesperson for the company.
The controversy surrounding O’Neal’s involvement in Astrals highlights the growing concerns around the regulation of NFTs and the potential for celebrity endorsements to mislead investors. The outcome of the lawsuit will be closely watched by the crypto industry and could have broader implications for how celebrities are involved in promoting crypto-related projects.
