Kim Kardashian Pays SEC $1.26 Million Over Crypto Ad on Instagram
And while Kardashian noted it was an ad in her Instagram post, that wasn’t enough to appease regulators, who say that Kardashian should have told consumers precisely how much she was getting for the ad.and Twitter explaining why the federal agency cares about celebrity endorsements of crypto and other securities.
“The federal securities laws are clear that any celebrity or other individual who promotes a crypto asset security must disclose the nature, source, and amount of compensation they received in exchange for the promotion,” Gurbir S. Grewal, Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement, said in a“Investors are entitled to know whether the publicity of a security is unbiased, and Ms. Kardashian failed to disclose this information,” Grewal continued.
How much was Kardashian actually paid for the ad? The billionaire received $250,000, all of which she’ll repay with an additional $10,000 interest. The $1 million on top of that is presumably meant to dissuade Kardashian from doing this ever again after her three-year hiatus.