The eldest of the controversial Paul brothers, Logan Paul, has reportedly launched a refund plan for his failed NFT venture, CryptoZoo, following a number of legal issues and fraud accusations.
The Street reports Paul Snr. – the popular YouTube personality and podcaster – has issued a proposal offering refunds to investors in the failed NFT project, CryptoZoo. This comes following a wave of criticism and the threat of a class-action lawsuit alleging deceptive practices by Paul and his team.
CryptoZoo was marketed as a game similar to Pokémon but with actual monetary rewards; however, the project fell apart amidst accusations of fraudulent activity, leaving investors with nothing to show for their investments.
This issue has been covered in-depth for some time by the YouTuber and investigator CoffeeZilla. In fact, many of the accusations against Paul surfaced following CoffeeZilla’s first video on the CryptoZoo project titled “Investigating Logan Paul’s Biggest Scam”:
Now, Paul has announced a buy-back program to reimburse people who bought particular NFTs, specifically “Base Eggs” and “Base Animals,” associated with CryptoZoo, which was never actually launched.
He has set aside more than $2.3 million to compensate individuals that invested in the project, offering a fixed 0.1 Ethereum for each qualifying NFT.
“With this buy-back program, I am personally committing more than $2.3 million to buy back Base Eggs and Base Animals from every person who intended to play CryptoZoo,” Paul wrote in a recent tweet.
Today, I am incredibly happy to announce that I am delivering on my promise to buy back Base Egg and Base Animal CryptoZoo NFTs for their original purchase price. This buy-back program is being carried out at https://t.co/XIQzLAGKiG. Claims can be submitted through this site… pic.twitter.com/VMPDHvdXkq
— Logan Paul (@LoganPaul) January 4, 2024
However – unsurprisingly – there is a catch. Participants in the buy-back must agree to waive any legal action against Paul related to the CryptoZoo project. The refund also excludes certain categories of NFTs, such as hybrid animals. Additionally, Paul has the final authority to determine which NFTs are ineligible for the refund.
The buyback program form states: “By accepting these Terms, you acknowledge and agree that you are waiving any actual or anticipated claims against PAUL, as well as against any related personnel, affiliates, agents, partners, employees, service providers, or representatives, for monetary or equitable relief arising out of or in connection with CryptoZoo.”
This refund offer is taking place against the backdrop of a complicated legal dispute. Paul is currently facing a class-action lawsuit filed by unhappy customers who claim that the project was actually a well-planned scam – something which CoffeeZilla claimed and appeared to back up in his first video on the project.
Paul and his team have been accused of selling NFTs that were not functional, leaving the project, and using manipulative market tactics to “pump” the project and the value of their own tokens.
File/ Logan Paul visits “Varney & Co.” at Fox Business Network Studios on November 10, 2023 in New York City. (Cindy Ord/Getty Images)
Adding another layer of complexity to the situation, Paul has filed a lawsuit against his former CryptoZoo team members, Jake Greenbaum and Eduardo Ibanez.
He claims that they concealed important information about the project and made profits by selling ZOO Tokens without informing him and he is seeking damages and attorney fees from Greenbaum and Ibanez.
Speaking about his lawsuit against Greenbaum and Ibanez, Paul stated: “This lawsuit is the result of an exhaustive investigation that included the review of the entirety of conversations and tracking nefarious trading activity related to the project. Nefarious trading activity taken behind our backs, without our knowledge, and with the intention of defrauding us all.”
Read more at The Street here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship.