Shalini Nagarajan

“Shark Tank” billionaire Mark Cuban is set to be deposed as part of a class-action lawsuit over his role in promoting failed crypto lender Voyager to millions of Americans.



A number of Voyager users filed the <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/lawsuit-likens-voyager-to-ponzi-sues-mark-cuban-for-promotion" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">lawsuit</a> in August, claiming both Cuban and Voyager CEO Steve Ehrlich encouraged them to invest with the alleged “deceptive” platform, which plaintiffs claim was a “massive Ponzi scheme.”



A deposition refers to the testimony of an individual conducted outside of court as part of the discovery process conducted prior to a trial.&nbsp;



Cuban had requested a US judge to split the deposition process into two sessions. But a <a href="https://assets.law360news.com/1563000/1563561/https-ecf-flsd-uscourts-gov-doc1-051125442809.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">court filing</a> dated Jan. 9 showed US magistrate judge Lisette Reid ordered him to do it in one sitting. He is now scheduled to be deposed in Dallas, Texas on Feb. 2.



The judge also ordered Pierce Robertson, Rachel Gold and Sanford Gold, three plaintiffs who brought the suit forward, to be deposed between Jan. 9 and Jan. 24.



Cuban’s professional basketball team the Dallas Mavericks was also named in the suit. Two team execs for corporate partnerships, Ryan Mackey and Kyle Tapply, will also be deposed before Feb. 23.



“Cuban and Ehrlich, as will be explained, went to great lengths to use their experience as investors to dupe millions of Americans into investing — in many cases, their life savings — into the Deceptive Voyager Platform,” the lawsuit read.



“As a result, over 3.5 million Americans have now all but lost over $5 billion in cryptocurrency assets.”



The suit further alleged that public support of Voyager by the Dallas Mavericks and Cuban showed they were targeting amateur investors with misleading promises of making large profits.



Cuban and Voyager didn’t return Blockworks’ requests for comment by press time. Voyager filed for bankruptcy in July after <a href="https://blockworks.co/news/voyager-files-for-bankruptcy-days-after-freezing-withdrawals" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">crumpling under exposure</a> to now-defunct crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital.



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Mark Cuban To Be Deposed Next Month in Voyager ‘Ponzi’ Suit

David Canellis

<div id="highlights-block_62f4d6b143ff4" class="highlights">
 <ul>
 <li>A team of Voyager investors allege Mark Cuban helped dupe millions of Americans into investing in a “massive Ponzi scheme&#8221;</li>
 <li>Voyager targeted amateur investors through youth-forward marketing, according to the lawsuit</li>
 </ul>
 
</div>



Recent court documents have detailed allegations against billionaire “Shark Tank” investor Mark Cuban over his relationship with bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital.&nbsp;



Investors claim Cuban and Voyager CEO <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/voyager-ceo-dumped-31m-stock-as-shares-hit-record-highs-cnbc/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Steve Ehrlich</a> were key players who personally reached out to potential Voyager customers and convinced them to put money into the “deceptive” platform. 



Cuban’s NBA team, the Dallas Mavericks, was also been named as a defendant in the lawsuit, a securities class-action <a href="https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/robertson-cuban-complaint-usdc-florida.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">complaint</a> filed on Wednesday showed.



The pair “went to great lengths to use their experience as investors to dupe millions of Americans into investing,” the 92-page-long complaint reads. 



Moskowitz Law Firm <a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/voyager-digital-sued-in-miami-federal-court-301545574.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">lodged</a> a similar class-action in December, which was <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/updated-lawsuit-alleges-voyager-digital-sold-unregistered-crypto-securities/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">updated</a> with additional allegations in April. That complaint has since been stayed as a result of Voyager&#8217;s bankruptcy, leading to a fresh filing.



The claimants have attempted to document both Cuban&#8217;s endorsements of Voyager Digital alongside his million-dollar losses associated with failed stablecoin project <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/algorithmic-stablecoin-developer-sam-kazemian-calls-for-caution-on-regulation/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Iron Finance</a>, which he publicly endorsed just before it crashed entirely.



Voyager <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/voyager-files-for-bankruptcy-days-after-freezing-withdrawals/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">filed for bankruptcy</a> in New York on July 5, days after freezing withdrawals on its platform over liquidity issues. 



The Toronto Stock Exchange suspended Voyager shares the next day and now face total delisting, but they&#8217;re still available on US-based OTC Markets. 



Voyager&#8217;s share price — which has oddly tripled in the last five days — has collapsed 97% over the past six months, while its native token VGX has tanked more than 80%.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Not just Cuban: Voyager pushed sports marketing at crypto peak</h3>



In October last year, as bitcoin hovered around all-time highs, <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/voyager-digital-partners-with-dallas-mavericks/">Dallas Mavericks partnered with Voyager</a> to boost brand awareness and drive crypto adoption when enthusiasm around digital assets was already high. 



Voyager was on a sports marketing kick at the time, as were many <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/ftx-inks-135m-sponsorship-deal-for-miami-heat-arena/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">other</a> crypto firms. Voyager had struck a <a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/voyager-digital-partners-with-football-star-rob-gronkowski-to-expand-crypto-platform--support-gronk-nation-301370901.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">promotional</a> deal with NFL star Rob Gronkowski one month earlier, which would see the four-time Superbowl champion &#8220;become a brand ambassador, Voyager shareholder and holder&#8221; of Voyager&#8217;s token VGX.



Another advertising <a href="http://prnewswire.com/news-releases/voyager-digital-extends-crypto-based-partnership-with-nascar-driver-landon-cassill-in-collaboration-with-kaulig-racing-301440789.html(opens in a new tab)" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">agreement</a> with NASCAR driver Landon Cassill, from December, was pegged to pay out in various cryptocurrencies, including VGX.



Claimants in the class-action describe Voyager as a “massive Ponzi scheme” that relied on support from Cuban and Dallas Mavericks.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="506" src="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-11-at-12.53.23-1024x506.png" alt="" class="wp-image-26358" srcset="https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-11-at-12.53.23-1024x506.png?w=1024 1024w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-11-at-12.53.23-1024x506.png?w=300 300w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-11-at-12.53.23-1024x506.png?w=768 768w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-11-at-12.53.23-1024x506.png?w=1536 1536w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-11-at-12.53.23-1024x506.png?w=428 428w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-11-at-12.53.23-1024x506.png?w=470 470w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-11-at-12.53.23-1024x506.png?w=389 389w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-11-at-12.53.23-1024x506.png?w=80 80w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-11-at-12.53.23-1024x506.png?w=50 50w, https://blockworks-co.imgix.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Screen-Shot-2022-08-11-at-12.53.23-1024x506.png?w=1666 1666w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /><figcaption>Investors cite a Reddit thread in which Erlich &#8220;played up&#8221; Cuban&#8217;s relationship with Voyager Digital.</figcaption></figure>



Voyager is estimated to owe $5.7 billion to over 100,000 parties.



“The very public support from the Dallas Mavericks and their owner, Mark Cuban, including their recent massive investment in the Deceptive Voyager Platform, gives a great illustration of how the Voyager Defendants are targeting unsophisticated investors with false and misleading promises of reaping large profits in the cryptocurrency market,” they wrote.



The plaintiffs also allege that Voyager targeted young, inexperienced investors through youth-forward marketing, promises of interest payments on crypto holdings and assurances that customers would receive the best price on trades.



Cuban and a representative for Ehrlich didn’t return Blockworks’ request for comment by press time.



This article was updated at 7:46 am ET with additional context.



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