NBA legend Paul Pierce settles with SEC over allegedly false crypto statements

NBA Corridor of Famer Paul “The Fact” Pierce agreed to pay $1.4 million to settle costs from the Securities and Alternate Fee over a cryptocurrency he promoted on Twitter. The SEC charged Pierce with making false and deceptive promotional statements about EthereumMax (EMAX) and failing to reveal the $244,000 cost in tokens he obtained for plugging it on social media.

The SEC mentioned Pierce additionally posted a deceptive screenshot of an account exhibiting far more in EMAX holdings and earnings than his account had. Pierce additionally tweeted a hyperlink to the foreign money’s web site, together with directions on buying EMAX tokens. The federal government company discovered that Pierce violated anti-touting and antifraud provisions of federal securities legal guidelines.

The retired NBA legend and former ESPN studio analyst didn’t admit or deny the SEC’s findings as a part of the settlement. Nonetheless, he did agree to not promote crypto for 3 years. Pierce’s case echoes Kim Kardashian’s $1.26 million settlement in October for plugging the identical foreign money. Pierce and Kardashian have been additionally sued final yr for his or her involvement within the scheme.

“This case is one more reminder to celebrities: The regulation requires you to confide in the general public from whom and the way a lot you’re getting paid to advertise funding in securities, and you’ll’t deceive buyers while you tout a safety,” mentioned SEC Chair Gary Gensler in an announcement right this moment. “When celebrities endorse funding alternatives, together with crypto asset securities, buyers ought to be cautious to analysis if the investments are proper for them, and they need to know why celebrities are making these endorsements.”