Binance users to employ creative tactics in class-action lawsuit

Binance users who lodged a proposed class-action lawsuit against Cristiano Ronaldo over his promotion of the crypto exchange are now seeking to serve the elusive soccer player through other viable channels, including X (formerly Twitter).

The motion filed on Jan. 16, 2024, argues for alternative service due to difficulties in traditional methods. Their proposal involves e-mail, X and website publication, arguing that it complies with international agreements and provides notice to the defendant.

The motion highlights the uncertainty about Ronaldo’s current address in Saudi Arabia and claims the Hague Conventions don’t prohibit these service methods, especially when the person’s address is unknown.

According to the motion, the plaintiffs have created a dedicated website for the case materials, which will then be sent “not only to the verified Twitter accounts of defendant Ronaldo but also to the email addresses of his domestic counsel involved in ongoing U.S. federal litigation.”

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The class-action lawsuit results from claims that Binance clients suffered losses due to his promotion of the crypto exchange. The Nov. 27, 2023 filing in a Florida district court claimed Ronaldo “promoted, assisted in, and/or actively participated in the offer and sale of unregistered securities in coordination with Binance.”

The suit cited U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission guidance warning celebrities of the need to disclose payments received for promoting cryptocurrencies, which the complaint claims Ronaldo failed to do. Binance entered a multiyear partnership with Ronaldo in mid-2022 to announce a series of his nonfungible tokens, with at least three of the soccer star’s collections tied to Binance.

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