Former Boston Celtics star Paul Pierce settles with SEC over crypto violations

NBA Hall of Famer Paul Pierce, who received a championship with the Boston Celtics, agreed to settle with the Securities and Exchange Commission for $1.4 million over allegations that he unlawfully touted crypto securities, the regulator introduced on Friday.

The motion towards Pierce entails his public statements about EthereumMax, or EMAX, the identical crypto safety product that the SEC charged influencer Kim Kardashian with unlawfully touting.

Pierce promoted EthereumMax tokens on Twitter whereas failing to reveal that he was paid for his promotion with EMAX tokens value greater than $244,000, the SEC alleged. Pierce didn’t admit or deny wrongdoing as a part of the settlement and pays a $1.1 million penalty and disgorge “approximately $240,000,” the SEC mentioned.

Pierce can be barred from selling any crypto asset securities for 3 years, the SEC mentioned.

“This case is yet another reminder to celebrities: The law requires you to disclose to the public from whom and how much you are getting paid to promote investment in securities, and you can’t lie to investors when you tout a security,” SEC Chairman Gary Gensler mentioned in an announcement.

Pierce’s social media assist for EthereumMax additionally concerned allegedly deceptive the general public about his EMAX holdings, in accordance with the SEC. Pierce allegedly shared deceptive screenshots of his EMAX holdings and earnings, the SEC mentioned, with out disclosing that his private holdings have been truly far decrease.

“@espn I don’t need you,” Pierce wrote in a May 2021 tweet. “I got @ethereum_max I made more money with this crypto in the past month then I did with y’all in a year.”

The SEC mentioned Pierce’s gross compensation from ESPN was greater than $1 million in 2020.

Representatives for Pierce didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.

Kardashian settled with the SEC in October for $1.2 million over her alleged touting of EMAX, which included a now notorious line, “Are you guys into crypto????”

A federal class motion lawsuit naming Pierce, Kardashian, Floyd Mayweather Jr. and different EthereumMax boosters was dismissed in December. A choose discovered that the plaintiffs’ allegations did not meet the “heightened pleading standards” that fraud instances demand. The lawsuit was refiled the identical month.

The SEC has gotten extra aggressive with its enforcement motion within the crypto house. On Thursday, the regulator charged stablecoin issuer Terraform and CEO Do Kwon with fraud.

Earlier this week, the SEC proposed adjustments to federal custody regulation that might materially influence the best way cryptocurrency exchanges are in a position to custody sure property. Days earlier, crypto trade Kraken settled with the SEC over its staking service. And in January, the SEC unveiled fees towards crypto lender Genesis and crypto trade Gemini over the alleged unregistered providing and sale of securities.

— CNBC’s Rebecca Picciotto contributed to this report.

WATCH: SEC Chair Gensler breaks down fees towards Kim Kardashian