A class-filling lawsuit against FTX celebrities who promoted the bankrupt FTX, now they get support from FTX Chief Daniel Friedberg. On May 11 class action lawyer filed a complaint in a Florida District Court and provided evidence about the promotional activity originating from Florida.
The defender claims that the Miami court has no jurisdiction and association with Florida may have their argument defense rebutted by the declaration.
Friedberg stated in sworn testimony that FTX US’ vice president of business development, Avinash “Avi” Dabir, was based in Miami and oversaw brand ambassadors for FTX, including the defendants in the case – former basketball player Shaquille O’Neal, comedian Larry David, retired NFL player Tom Brady, and FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried.
According to Friedberg’s testimony, Dabir worked from an FTX office in Miami “early in 2021”. The class action lawyers argued that this statement contradicts the claims made by the defendants in their motions to dismiss.
Some of the alleged sponsors argued that a Florida conspiracy was not possible “because FTX did not plan to move to Miami until the end of September 2022-that is before they entered into the alleged sponsorship agreements.
The lawyers handling the class action are amending their lawsuit with new evidence in an attempt to address the jurisdictional claims made by the defendants in the suit.
The lawsuit accusing celebrity promoters of involvement in the exchange’s collapse was filed shortly after the incident in mid-November. The defendants named in the suit include Gisele Bündchen, Kevin O’Leary, Steph Curry, and the Golden State Warriors. On December 16th, an amended complaint named Friedberg as a defendant.
Reportedly, the former head of compliance has assisted with other legal proceedings against the exchange where he used to work.
A few weeks after the collapse of the exchange, investigators from the New York District Attorney’s office, the Justice Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reportedly obtained information about FTX from Friedberg.
