Tezos Foundation reaches $25 million settlement with investors in ICO lawsuit

The Tezos Foundation has crossed the final leg of a $25 million settlement it initially agreed to in March with investors who claimed that the foundation conducted an unregistered initial coin offering (ICO) in 2017.

On Friday, U.S. District Judge Richard Seeborg of the Northern District of California signed off on the settlement, taking the years-long case to its final conclusion. However, the court has not ruled on whether Tezos' ICO, worth $232 million, was an unregistered securities sale.

THE SCOOP

Keep up with the latest news, trends, charts and views on crypto and DeFi with a new biweekly newsletter from The Block's Frank Chaparro

By signing-up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy
By signing-up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

As part of the settlement, lead plaintiff Trigon Trading's attorneys will take more than $8.5 million of the total compensation. The remaining $16.5 million will be distributed among investors who suffered losses after participating in the Tezos ICO. Those who gained from their investment will not be able to make a claim.

In March, the Tezos Foundation said it agreed to settle the case because lawsuits are "expensive and time-consuming," although it continued to believe that the case was "meritless."

About Author

Yogita Khatri is a senior reporter at The Block, covering all things crypto. As one of the earliest team members, Yogita has played a pivotal role in breaking numerous stories, exclusives and scoops. With nearly 3,000 articles under her belt, Yogita holds the records as The Block's most-published and most-read author of all time. Prior to joining The Block, Yogita worked at crypto publication CoinDesk and The Economic Times, where she wrote on personal finance. To contact her, email: [email protected]. For her latest work, follow her on X @Yogita_Khatri5.