U.S. billionaire and owner of the Dallas Mavericks, Mark Cuban, will be deposed in court in February as part of a continuing lawsuit against him by customers of the bankrupt cryptocurrency lender Voyager Digital, who claim that Cuban promoted a Ponzi scheme.
Cuban and his legal team requested that the deposition be split into two sessions, but the request was denied on January 9, by overseeing judge Lisette M. Reid. The full deposition will take part on Feb 2 in Dallas, Texas. Two other Dallas Mavericks employees will also be deposed before February 23 as part of the defense. The suit against Cuban was filed in a U.S. District Court in South Florida in August 2022, by disgruntled customers of Voyager who allege that Cuban misrepresented the firm in promotional materials. The suit describes Voyager as a “massive Ponzi scheme” and makes specific reference to Cuban’s aggressive promotion of the firm to crypto novices and inexperienced retail investors. Voyager was allegedly targeting such investors.
Cuban finds himself in deep trouble after he made statements that enticed Voyager investors, including claiming that the lender was “as close to risk-free as you’re gonna get in the crypto universe.” The lawsuit also alleges that Voyagers described itself as a “fully compliant and licensed crypto broker” despite not being registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, or the required Federal or state regulators involved in overseeing the selling of securities.
Voyager Digital filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on July 6 following heavy liquidity issues as a result of a defaulted loan involving Three Arrows Capital and the ongoing crypto winter. Voyager is currently undergoing what they call a “restructuring plan” aimed at preserving customer assets.
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