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The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday announced charges against entrepreneur Justin Sun and eight celebrities, including actress Lindsay Lohan, boxer and social media star Jake Paul, and rapper Akon, for allegedly “illegally touting” crypto asset securities Tronix (TRX) and BitTorrent (BTT).
Sun and his companies, Tron Foundation Limited, BitTorrent Foundation Ltd., and Rainberry Inc., were also charged for unregistered offers and sales of crypto asset securities TRX and BTT.
According to the SEC, Sun and his companies unlawfully offered and sold TRX and BTT through unregistered “bounty programs.”
These programs directed interested parties to promote the tokens on social media, join and recruit others to Tron-affiliated Telegram and Discord channels, and create BTT accounts in exchange for TRX and BTT distributions.
The celebrities are accused of being compensated by Sun for promoting TRX and BTT on social media without disclosing the deal as part of an alleged scheme by Sun. The entrepreneur is accused of inducing investors to buy TRX and BTT via the celebrity-promoted campaign of tweets.
In addition to Lindsay Lohan, Jake Paul, and Akon, the other celebrities caught up in the crypto crackdown are DeAndre Cortez Way (Soulja Boy), Austin Mahone, Michele Mason (Kendra Lust), Miles Parks McCollum (Lil Yachty), and Shaffer Smith (Ne-Yo).
Some of the celebrities charged, with the exception of Cortez Way and Mahone, agreed to pay a collective total of more than $400,000 in disgorgement, interest, and penalties to settle the charges without admitting or denying the SEC’s findings.
