In a shocking turn of events, bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX is now on a mission to recover millions of dollars. It disbursed to celebrity athletes and sports teams who endorsed the exchange before its abrupt bankruptcy filing in November. Shaquille O’Neal the NBA legend is on the receiving end of this unexpected step.
The financial drama has unfolded through an extensive 180-page court filing submitted on August 31. The FTX’s financial advisors detailed the payments made to various high-profile figures and businesses.
Shaq O’Neal sued over NFTs — again
Remember 2022? Shaq co-founded Solana NFT collection “Astrals”.
But when FTX collapsed he abandoned the project.
People were furious. In May 2023, they sued.
In June, Shaq’s lawyer tried to dismiss the case.
Now, a new hefty 111-page… pic.twitter.com/Vlp5L43jf1
— Pix🔎 (@PixSorcerer) September 9, 2023
The goal was to investigate whether these transactions could be reversed, following the rules applicable to bankrupt companies. Among the notable recipients of FTX were former NBA superstar Shaq, tennis sensation Naomi Osaka, David Ortiz, and football quarterback Trevor Lawrence.
The exchange also directed substantial sums, totaling nearly $750,000, to Shaquille O’Neal, and payments exceeding $300,000 to Naomi Osaka. However, the court filing comes with a significant red flag. The final amount FTX manages to recover “may vary materially from the amount reported.”
This legal battle is further complicated by the fact that many of the celebrities named in FTX’s recent filing have been hit with class-action lawsuits. These are from FTX users who are seeking damages.
FTX also plans to retrieve payments made to Naomi Osaka
Notably, Shaquille O’Neal, Naomi Osaka, and the Golden State Warriors have all faced legal action from groups of FTX customers. They allege that these celebrities played a significant role in promoting the exchange, which is accused of selling unregistered securities.
In its pursuit of recovering funds, FTX has initiated a series of lawsuits, including one filed on September 9 against cross-chain protocol LayerZero Labs. This is with the aim of getting back a staggering $21 million that they claim was illegally withdrawn prior to the exchange’s bankruptcy filing last year.
In a separate lawsuit launched in July, FTX targeted co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried and other former top executives. Thereby seeking to reclaim over $1 billion in funds they allegedly misappropriated.
However, the response from the involved parties remains largely silent. Representatives for O’Neal, Osaka, Curry, the Golden State Warriors, and MLB have not provided any comments on the matter. It remains to be seen how they will navigate this legal minefield.
This recent revelation comes after FTX’s new management initiated a lawsuit against a venture capital firm. That allegedly facilitated connections between Bankman-Fried and NBA stars and other celebrities like Shaq and Osaka.