MrBeast, Andrew Tate and 8 other celebrities with messy crypto promotions
YouTube star MrBeast isn’t the only famous name with ties to an alleged crypto pump-and-dump scheme.
Crypto.news found at least nine other scenarios where either a celebrity or influencer promoted a coin to investors, only to sell their holdings at an inflated price. The digital asset’s price subsequently crashed, leaving other investors — often their fans — with significant losses.
Most celebrity projects typically fizzle out soon after launch, anyway. But there are notable cases that keep cropping up that alarm regulators, and remind investors to conduct research before following high-profile promotions. Here’s our list, teeing off with Donaldson.
DJ Khaled
DJ Khaled, whose real name is Khaled Mohamed Khaled, also promoted Centra Tech on social media.
Like Mayweather, Khaled was charged for failing to disclose that they were paid to promote the ICO, which violated anti-touting provisions.
As a result, in 2018, Khaled settled with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) by paying a fine of $152,725 (Mayweather paid over $600,000). This included disgorgement of earnings and additional penalties.
Khaled also agreed not to promote any securities for two years. This case marked one of the SEC’s early actions against celebrity endorsements in the crypto industry, setting a precedent for transparency and accountability in such promotions.
Soulja Boy
The rapper and social media influencer was charged by the SEC for allegedly promoting TRON (TRX) and BitTorrent (BTT) without disclosing that he was being paid.
Soulja Boy, along with other influencers, faced a legal backlash, as he continued to promote various coins and NFTs despite the risks.
Jake Paul
YouTuber and boxer Jake Paul — brother to Logan Paul — faced a lawsuit for allegedly promoting the cryptocurrency SafeMoon without disclosing his financial interest in it.
SafeMoon’s value dropped sharply after promotions by Paul and other celebrities.
It doesn’t end there. Another incident was Paul’s association with Save the Kids, a cryptocurrency project that claimed to support charitable causes.
The project faced significant backlash and scrutiny when it was alleged that Paul and others promoted the token to inflate its price and then sold off their holdings, which led to a sharp decline in its value, resulting in substantial losses for investors.
Paul denied any wrongdoing.
Lindsay Lohan
In 2023, Lindsay Lohan was among several celebrities, including Jake Paul, to face charges from the SEC for allegedly promoting TRX and BTT tokens from the Tron Foundation without appropriate disclosures.
The case highlighted that she and others were paid to endorse these tokens.
But, Lohan often promoted crypto projects and NFT collections on social media. A spreadsheet leaked by ZachXBT on social media suggested that the “Mean Girls” star regularly charged $25,000 to shill projects — or $20,000 for a retweet.
That led to some unwelcome attention from the SEC, which accused her of boosting Justin Sun’s Tron and BitTorrent tokens.
She ultimately settled the SEC charges, and joined the likes of Ne-Yo and Akon in paying a combined $400,000.
Paul Pierce
The former NBA star promoted EthereumMax on his social media in 2021 without disclosing his payment, like Kardashian and Mayweather. Pierce ultimately settled with the SEC in 2023, paying a $1.4 million fine.
The lawsuit filed against these celebrities accused them of engaging in a pump-and-dump scheme, where they allegedly promoted EMAX to inflate its price and then sold their holdings, leading to significant losses for retail investors who were drawn in by their endorsements. While Pierce and his fellow promoters have denied any wrongdoing, the legal implications of their endorsements highlighted concerns regarding celebrity influence in the crypto market
The EMAX crackdown was part of a broader effort to investigate celebrity endorsements in the cryptocurrency space. This situation has drawn attention to the legal responsibilities of influencers when promoting financial products
Andrew Tate
YouTuber Coffeezilla, known for exposing scams, is in a public dispute with proud misogynist Andrew Tate over the influencer’s shifting stance on crypto.
Coffeezilla shared past clips of Tate, who once dismissed crypto as worthless and claimed he wouldn’t exploit fans by launching coins. Despite this, Tate has since promoted multiple meme coins, including “ROOST” and “F Madonna token,” both of which lost significant value shortly after his endorsements.
Coffeezilla also highlighted Tate’s promotion of “Real World Token,” tied to Tate’s online course, which resembles a pyramid scheme, with subscribers earning tokens that represent profit shares.
Tate, who was arrested in Romania in 2022 on human trafficking charges, has maintained his innocence as his legal troubles continue to attract public .
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