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The United States Securities and Exchange Commission launched a legal process against Justin Sun, the founder of the cryptocurrency distribution companies Tron, BitTorrent and Rainberry Inc. The government agency also included eight celebrities in the complaint, including Lohan and Paul, for promoting the financial products of these companies without disclosing that they received monetary compensation for it.
Sun is accused of “the illegal sale of cryptocurrencies and the artificial inflation of the trading volume of crypto assets,” according to the US body.
The Chinese businessman does not have the corresponding permits to market assets known as Tronix and BitTorrent, so the business of his companies is not regulated by the regulations in force in the US market.
The lawsuit by the body that regulates the country’s stock market was filed in Manhattan Federal Court on March 22 and, in the charges, the use of “reward programs” aimed at celebrities to promote assets on social networks is included.
Entertainment personalities noted include actress Lindsay Lohan, controversial YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul, rappers ‘Soulja Boy’ and ‘Lil Yachty’ as well as American pop singer Austin Mahone.
The celebrities charged, with the exception of Mahone and DeAndre Cortez Way -real name of ‘Soulja Boy’- agreed to pay around $400,000 to settle the charges that the commission attributes to them.
While the celebrities have already been acquitted, Justin Sun faces a million-dollar legal dispute against the US government.
According to reports from the Securities and Exchange Commission, Sun companies generated around $31 million from illegal offers and sales of cryptocurrencies.
The cryptocurrency market is ceasing to be an unregulated business in the United States and the eyes of the authorities are increasingly focused on this new world.
With Reuters and AFP
