Filed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Fraud and unregistered securities charges against cryptocurrency founder and diplomat Justin Sun. Additionally, it has filed separate violations against celebrity backers of its crypto assets Tronix and BitTorrent. “In connection with the charges against Sun, we also indict 8 celebrities for illegally promoting Sun’s crypto-asset securities.”The Securities and Exchange Commission shared a statement.
The Securities and Exchange Commission alleged that Sun committed Fraud by manipulating the trading activity of the two tokens, creating the appearance of active trading when there is none. “This case illustrates once again the high risks investors face when securities of crypto assets are offered and sold without proper disclosure.”said SEC Chairman Gary Gensler.
Sun allegedly urged investors to buy TRX and BTT tokens “Running a promotional campaign in which he and his celebrity promoters hid the fact that celebrities were paid for their tweets.”says the statement.
“Allegedly, Sun and his companies not only targeted US investors with their unregistered offerings and sales, generating millions in illegal proceeds at the expense of investors, but also orchestrated a wash trade on an unregistered trading platform. Trading on TRX,” Also refers to the SEC statement.
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These are the celebrities involved in the Tron fraud case
In the statement, the SEC made clear who he was Eight celebrities who illegally promoted crypto-asset securities:
- Actress Lindsay Lohan
- Social media personality Jake Paul
- Musician DeAndre Cortez Way aka Soulja Boy
- Musician Austin Mahone
- Adult Content Actress Michelle Mason, better known as Kendra Lust
- Musician Miles Parks McCollum, better known as Lil Yacht
- Musician Shaffer Smith aka Ne-Yo
- Musician Aliaune Thiam, also known as Akon
Most of the celebrities, with the exception of Soulja Boy and Mahone, agreed to pay a collective sum of $400,000 in repayment, interest, and penalties to settle the charges. The agreements were not an admission or denial of guilt.
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