In a current class action lawsuit in the United States, the EOS Network Foundation (ENF) has openly pushed the EOS community to reject the proposed settlement with Block.one, the business that created the EOS blockchain. On August 8, 2023, the information was published on the ENF’s official Twitter account.
The EOS Network Foundation is a group with the mission of using decentralization to plan a coordinated future for the EOS Network as an agent of good in the world.
Details of the Settlement
The proposed settlement pertains to the ongoing class action against Block.one, and details can be found at the settlement website. The settlement amount is $22 million, a figure that the ENF has criticized as being inadequate.
According to the ENF’s statement, “The proposed settlement amount of $22 million represents a tiny fraction of the $4 billion that Block.one raised from the community in its ICO sale and the $1 billion that Block.one promised to invest in the EOS Network and community, but failed to do.”
ENF’s Stance
The ENF has expressed strong dissatisfaction with the terms of the settlement, stating that it does not adequately compensate community members for losses suffered due to Block.one’s “misrepresentations and bad acts.” Furthermore, the ENF emphasizes that the settlement would bar class members’ rights to seek fair and just resolution to their claims in the future.
The ENF’s statement further reads: “$22 million is too small a price for Block.one to pay to avoid having to be held to account for their bad acts in the future.”
Call to Action
The ENF is urging community members to opt out of the settlement, sending a message to Block.one and the court that the settlement is inadequate. The deadline to opt out is August 29, 2023. Failure to opt out by this date may result in automatic inclusion in the class, impairing future rights to bring a claim against Block.one.
EOS community members who wish to opt out of the settlement can do so by completing the web-form located at this link.
What Happend Before The Call
The ENF’s call to reject the settlement comes in the context of ongoing legal disputes with Block.one.
Block.one is being sued by the ENF for “failing to follow through on its $1B commitment,” according to an announcement made by ENF founder and CEO Yves La Rose on July 25.
On January 31, 2023, U.S. court rejected Block.one’s $27.5 million settlement offer to main plaintiff Crypto Assets Opportunity. The $22 million settlement that is now being sought relates to a different class-action case that has been ongoing for some time.
La Rose has been outspoken about the difficulties the EOS community is experiencing as a result of Block.one allegedly not honoring its investment pledges. In May 2023, he initially advocated for a class-action lawsuit against Block.one, claiming that the firm had broken its pledge to give EOSIO developers $1 billion from the EOS initial coin offering (ICO) which Block.one raised $4.1 billion in 2018.
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