NBA Star and YouTuber Settle Binance Class Action Lawsuit, Paying $340K

NBA star Jimmy Butler and crypto YouTuber Ben Armstrong, known as “BitBoy,” have agreed to settle a class action lawsuit brought against them for promoting alleged unregistered securities sold by Binance, paying a combined total of $340,000.

Butler has agreed to settle for $300,000, while Armstrong will pay $40,000, according to CoinTelegraph. Despite the settlement, both continue to deny any wrongdoing.

Settled but Denied Wrongdoing

Butler's settlement agreement emphasises that he “adamantly denies any and all wrongdoing,” asserting that he believes he would “be absolved of all liability” if the case were to reach a conclusion. Similarly, Armstrong denies “any wrongdoing or liability,” maintaining that he has “valid defences” against the allegations.

However, both individuals have opted to settle to avoid the escalating costs and time commitment of a prolonged legal battle.

According to a court filing by the legal representatives of the class action lawsuit in Miami on 19 August, the lawyers are now seeking the court’s preliminary approval for the settlement deal.

Another Class Action Lawsuit against Binance

The class action lawsuit was initially filed in March 2023 and also names Binance, its US-based unit, and former CEO Changpeng Zhao. In June 2023, the lawsuit was amended to include stablecoin issuer Paxos Trust Company as a defendant.

The lawsuit represents potentially millions of Binance.US and Binance.com customers who used or invested in BNB Vault, Simple Earn, or any staking products on the platforms. It further claims that BNB, the now-defunct stablecoin Binance USD (BUSD), Solana, Cardano, Polygon, Filecoin, Cosmos, The Sandbox, Decentraland, Algorand, Axie Infinity, and Coti are unregistered securities, meaning anyone who invested in those tokens may be eligible to receive settlement proceeds.

Butler and Armstrong were accused of promoting these alleged unregistered securities sold by Binance.

Interestingly, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has also been pursuing many cryptocurrency exchanges, alleging that they offer unregistered securities. The regulatory agency even took Binance to court over several allegations. Even for the SEC, proving whether a cryptocurrency is an unregistered security is complex and time-consuming.

Meanwhile, football legend Cristiano Ronaldo is also facing a $1 billion class action lawsuit for endorsing Binance, specifically regarding the non-fungible tokens (NFTs) collection launched in November 2022. In May, a Florida judge rejected a motion to dismiss the case.

Furthermore, Finance Magnates recently reported that a new class action lawsuit has been filed against Binance and Zhao, alleging that the exchange facilitated money laundering for criminals.