According to Cointelegraph: NFL quarterback Trevor Lawrence and YouTube influencers Kevin Paffrath and Tom Nash have reportedly settled a class-action lawsuit that accused them of inadequate compensation disclosure in their promotions for the defunct cryptocurrency exchange FTX. According to a Bloomberg report on September 16, the trio has entered proposed agreements, although the terms of the settlement were not disclosed. Lawrence, Paffrath, and Nash are the first among several high-profile celebrities and influencers, such as Tom Brady, Gisele Bündchen, Shaquille O’Neal, and others, to reach a settlement in the lawsuit.
The class-action lawsuit also accuses eight YouTube influencers, including Paffrath and Nash, of failing to disclose compensation. The other six individuals are Graham Stephan, Andrei Jikh, Jaspreet Singh, Brian Jung, Jeremy Lefebvre, and Erika Kullberg. Creators Agency, the talent management company behind the FTX promotion, is named in the lawsuit as well. FTX is currently considering methods to recoup the millions it paid to the celebrity athletes and sports teams that endorsed the crypto exchange before its insolvency in November 2022, as detailed in a September 11 court filing.
The lawsuit, filed on March 15, alleges that the defendants, including Trevor Lawrence, who received $205,555, Shaquille O’Neal receiving approximately $750,000, and Kevin O’Leary with a fee of $2,348,338, failed to disclose the nature and scope of their sponsorships and endorsement deals, payments, or compensation related to their FTX promotion. The complaint contends that these influencers presented the promotional content as genuine interest rather than paid content: “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.”
