CRYPTOCURRENCY

Cristiano Ronaldo Hit With $1B Lawsuit For Promoting Binance NFTs

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Cristiano Ronaldo has been named in a $1 billion class-action lawsuit filed against the soccer star over his role in promoting NFTs for the embattled Binance cryptocurrency platform. The lawsuit, filed in Florida, claims that Ronaldo’s promotion of Binance was “deceptive and unlawful” and led people to make costly and unsafe investments. Ronaldo is just the latest celebrity to be sued over their endorsement of NFTs.

“Evidence now reveals that Binance’s fraud was only able to reach such heights through the offer and sale of unregistered securities, with the willing help and assistance of some of the wealthiest, powerful and recognized organizations and celebrities across the globe — just like Defendant Ronaldo,” the suit reads. Binance is currently under federal investigation for a litany of charges. In short, a years-long DoJ investigation has found that Binance and its top execs willfully ignored US law will knowingly allowing “bad actors” to use the crypto exchange. Charges include money laundering, operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business, and ignoring US sanctions.

Read More: IShowSpeed Goes After Cristiano Ronaldo Haters

Cristiano Ronaldo Could Be Lashed If He Returns To Iran

However, this is not the first legal trouble that Ronaldo has found himself in this year. In October, Ronaldo was reportedly sentenced to 99 lashings in Iran over adultery charges. Ronaldo was Iran in September for an Asian Champions League match. While there, he was seen hugging Iranian painter Fatima Hamimi after she gifted him two paintings. According to Iranian law, it is a criminal offense to touch another woman while in a relationship. However, some outlets have noted that he could be pardoned if he expresses remorse for his actions.

Despite this, Ronaldo is not currently scheduled to play in Iran for the rest of the season. However, the possibility does remain. Two Iranian teams can still qualify for the knockout rounds of the AFC Champions League. If Al-Nassr was to draw either Sepahan or Persepolis, they would have to play a game in Iran. That could lead to an uncomfortable standoff over Ronaldo’s past transgressions.

Read More: IShowSpeed Cries And Ends Stream After Falling For Cristiano Ronaldo Death Hoax

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Logan Paul Apologizes For CryptoZoo Failure, Plans To Give Out Refunds

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In 2021, Logan Paul officially launched his NFT-game, CryptoZoo. It’s “an autonomous ecosystem that allows ZooKeepers to buy, sell, and trade exotic animals and hybrids. CryptoZoo incorporates cryptocurrency and Non Fungible Tokens (NFTs) into a simple, fun game with familiar mechanics.” Of course, this is according to a since-deleted description on its official site.

Paul is responsible for selling images of animal NFTs within the game. He’s also responsible for subsequently telling players that they’d be able to hatch them and breed the animals. In doing so, they’d be able to win coins in a cryptocurrency called $ZOO.

Logan Paul looks on during a press conference at Madison Square Garden on July 12, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)

However, later in 2021, YouTuber Coffeezilla put out a docu-series on his channel as an attempt to expose the game as non-functional. After making millions through the sales of NFTs within CryptoZoo, it seemed as though the podcaster had abandoned the project completely. This is because he seemed to have stopped mentioning it. As a result, many were left to believe it was a scam.

After facing public criticism for CryptoZoo ever since, the new WWE wrestler is finally addressing the situation. He does so in a video posted to his Twitter account on Friday (January 13). He begins by denouncing his attitude towards Coffeezilla’s accusations and denies scamming anyone through the game.

“That’s what I’d do if I was him; milk the sh*t out of this. He’s probably going to, he’s good, he’s very good. The more he says and the more he continues to spread this misinformation that this was any sort of con or scam, the more I have for the lawsuit that I am filing,” he initially said in response on an episode of his podcast, Impaulsive.

In his new update, however, he goes on to detail his plans to give back $1.3 million in rewards. This will go to players who ultimately feel disappointment in the game. “Step 1, Jeff and I are going to burn our ZooTokens, so we have no financial upside in the game and it will add value to holder tokens. Step 2, we want to offer a rewards program for players who are disappointed in the status of the game, so essentially, you’re gonna be able to burn your base egg or your base animal for the mint price, which was 0.1ETH or the equivalent in BNB,” says the 27-year-old.

“I am personally committing 1,000 ETH to this, which is about $1.3 million right now, for players who want to get out. Step 3, obviously finish and deliver the game, as outlined in the white paper by completing the egg bridge from ETH to BSC for base animals and base eggs, completing the marketplace and obviously, completing the release your animals into the wild, to accrue your yield function,” he continues afterwards.

Paul says there is currently an internal investigation going on. He plans to pursue legal action against “whomever needs to be held accountable.” It will certainly be interesting to hear the findings.

What are your thoughts on the whole CryptoZoo failure? Comment down below. Finally, make sure to stay tuned to HNHH for all of the latest pop culture news and updates.

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The Winklevoss Twins Laid Off Dozens Of Staff At Their Crypto Company, But That Hasn’t Stopped Them From Touring With Their Much-Mocked Cover Band

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winklevoss twins
Getty Image

The cryptocurrency market is not doing so hot right now, with prices plummeting so low that people are once again remembering that notorious Matt Damon Super Bowl crypto ad. It’s gotten so bad that Gemini, the exchange company run by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss — aka the Winklevii, made famous by their lawsuit against Mark Zuckerberg and portrayal in the film The Social Network — had to law off 10 percent of their staff. But that hasn’t stopped them from touring with their much-mocked cover band.

In a new report by The Daily Beast, current and former Gemini employees spilled the dirt on the company’s attempts to deal with the floundering crypto market, as well as multiple lawsuits. They’ve responded in two ways: with layoffs and by putting more weight on Mars Junction, their touring cover band in which they do renditions of “Don’t Stop Believin’” and The Red Hot Chili Peppers’ “Suck My Kiss.”

The twins have gone so far as to remove references to crypto from their Twitter bios and replaced a link to Gemini with one for Mars Junction, which is described on their Twitter bio as a “hard-hitting rock band.”

“They laid off 10 percent of their staff,” one former staffer told The Daily Beast, “and then they went on tour with their rock band.”

The Winklevii launched Gemini in 2014, in the early days of the cryptocurrency craze, when bitcoin was only worth a few hundred dollars. Today, one current employee describes it as a “sinking ship.” Meanwhile, Mars Junction spent Saturday night playing in Brooklyn.

(Via The Daily Beast)

A Yeezus Amusement Park May Be In The Cards, According To Kanye West’s Latest Reported Trademark Filings

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Kanye West 2022 Paris Fashion Week
Getty Image / Pascal Le Segretain

Kanye West, through his various endeavors, has a foot in pretty much every field of human endeavor right now; Recently, for example, Donda Sports has received attention for signing Aaron Donald and Jaylen Brown. Now, it looks like Ye is keeping an open mind when it comes to entering the amusement park game.

According to trademark attorney Josh Gerben, West — or more accurately, his Mascotte Holdings, Inc. company — filed 17 new trademark applications based on his Yeezus name, on May 27. The filings suggest Ye intends to attach the Yeezus name to things like amusement parks, blockchain-based currencies and non-fungible tokens (cryptocurrencies and NFTs), stores, toys, games, sporting equipment, buttons, clothing, bags, household items, and cosmetics, among others.

Aside from aforementioned ventures, West has kept busy with new music: Over the past week, he collaborated with Vory on “Daylight” and XXXTentacion on “True Love.” The new Yeezy Gap Engineered By Balenciaga collection also just had a global launch, and more reveals about what Ye has been up to have been shared as the new Hulu series The Kardashians. For instance, he apparently walked out on Kim Kardashian’s Saturday Night Live monologue after taking exception to some of what she said, and took his kids to school in a fire truck.

Is Drake Being Reckless By Promoting His New Crypto Betting Platform To Fans?

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Drake

Drake announced his new crypto betting platform partnership last week with a 40-second video featuring fireworks, tropical beach sunsets, and lavish partying. But behind the sizzle, there are questions about the legality of the venture and how harmful crypto betting can be for Drake’s loyal fans. Drake and Stake For several months, Drake dropped hints […]