Shaquille O’Neal Settles $11 Million NFT Lawsuit Amid Market Recovery

Shaquille O'Neal, the former NBA star and sports commentator, has reached a settlement in a class action lawsuit tied to his promotion of the Astrals non-fungible token (NFT) project.

This comes after he was named in multiple legal claims, including one involving the now-defunct crypto exchange FTX. The settlement is part of an agreement where O’Neal will pay $11 million to resolve allegations related to the promotion of Astrals NFTs. The case, initially filed in 2023, accused him of misleading investors into buying digital collectibles by leveraging his celebrity status.

The Astrals collection, a set of 10,000 NFTs created by Damien Guimoneau, was marketed as a virtual space for users to interact with each other and celebrities like O’Neal.

Plaintiffs argued that many individuals invested in the NFTs solely because of O’Neal’s promotion, which ultimately led to financial losses when the value of the assets plummeted. Despite O’Neal’s attempts to distance himself from the project, the case proceeded, culminating in the settlement agreement.

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This resolution comes as the NFT market is showing signs of recovery. October saw a reversal in sales trends, with monthly NFT sales climbing by 18%, reaching $356 million after a prolonged decline. As of mid-November, NFT transactions surged further, boosted by rising crypto values and increased activity on major platforms like Ethereum, Bitcoin, and Solana.

Kostadin Dimitrov