NBA Hall of Famer Paul Pierce Indicted by SEC for Soliciting EMAX Token –
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has indicted Basketball Hall of Famer Paul Pierce for promoting EMAX tokens and making misleading comments about unregistered cryptocurrencies. The former Boston Celtics small forward agreed to settle the charges and pay the SEC $1.409 million.
SEC Chairman Gary Gensler wants to remind celebrities about public disclosure laws
The US top securities regulator has indicted former Boston Celtics forward Paul Pierce for unlawfully promoting the cryptocurrency project called Ethereummax and token EMAX. The Securities and Exchange Commission’s indictments against Pierce follow an onslaught of enforcement action by US regulators against staking services, earn programs, stablecoins and the terra-Blockchain-Ecosystem of Do Kwon. According to the SEC complaint, Pierce “did not disclose that he was paid more than $244,000 worth of EMAX tokens to promote the tokens on Twitter.”
Pierce agreed to settle the charges with the SEC for $1.409 million in penalties, disgorgement and interest. The complaint further alleges that Pierce tweeted a screenshot of winnings that were much lower than his personal holdings. Another tweet shared the Ethereummax project website, resulting in a portal to buy EMAX tokens. Pierce isn’t the only celebrity sued by the SEC for unlawful Advertising and misleading investors with the Ethereummax project and associated tokens.
In October 2022, socialite Kim Kardashian was accused of improperly promoting crypto asset EMAX. At the time, Kardashian also settled $1.26 million in penalties with the SEC. In a statement on Pierce’s allegations, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler insisted the case was “another celebrity reminder.” Gensler continued, “The law requires you to disclose to the public who pays you and how much to promote investment in securities, and you must not lie to investors when promoting a security.”
The regulator added:
When celebrities endorse investment opportunities, including crypto-asset securities, investors should carefully research whether the investments are right for them and understand why celebrities are making these endorsements.
The SEC’s indictments find that the Basketball Hall of Famer violated the anti-touting and anti-cheating provisions of the federal securities laws. The basketball star settled with the SEC on a non-admit-or-deny basis and vowed not to mine crypto assets for three years. The SEC also reminded investors to watch Gensler’s video about not making investments “only on the recommendation of a celebrity or influencer.”
What are your thoughts on the SEC’s recent enforcement actions against celebrities promoting crypto assets and the alleged need for full disclosure to the public? Do share your thoughts in the comment section below.
photo credit: Shutterstock, Pixabay, WikiCommons
(function(d, s, id) {
var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];
if (d.getElementById(id)) return;
js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id;
js.src=”
fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);
}(document, ‘script’, ‘facebook-jssdk’));
Source: Crypto News Deutsch
