Crypto Legal Cases: Drake Sued for Streaming Manipulation, Controversy Over US Government Bitcoin Sale

Drake in the Crosshairs: Allegations of Bot Networks and Illegal Gambling

Canadian rapper Drake is at the center of a class-action lawsuit filed in a federal court in Virginia. The allegations are serious: together with influencers like Adin Ross, the musician allegedly used funds from crypto casino Stake.us to artificially inflate his streaming numbers on platforms like Spotify, deceiving thousands of users in the process ^[1].

According to the complaint, "crypto casino funds were used" to "stage livestreams with high betting stakes" ^[1]. The goal of this strategy was to generate reach through covert payments via the platform's internal "tipping" function. This feature allegedly "enabled the financing of artificial streams" ^[1].

The lawsuit accuses Drake of "artificially inflating his reach through automated bot networks and deliberately manipulating algorithms" ^[1]. In so-called botting, automated software programs are deployed to play music tracks on loop simultaneously across thousands of accounts to artificially boost streaming numbers ^[1].

Business Model Under Suspicion

Stake.us's business model is also under fire. Although the platform presents itself as "safe, free, and social," the lawsuit alleges a clear violation of US gambling law ^[1]. Through the sale of so-called Gold Coins, which the complaint claims are worthless, in combination with Stake Cash that can be exchanged for cryptocurrency, real betting stakes are allegedly being concealed ^[1].

Controversy Over US Government Bitcoin Sale

In a separate case, an alleged Bitcoin sale by US authorities is causing outrage in the crypto community. Cynthia Lummis, Senator from Wyoming, expressed her "deep concern" regarding the incident ^[2]. The liquidation could violate Donald Trump's Executive Order establishing a strategic Bitcoin reserve from March 2025 ^[2].

According to a report by Bitcoin Magazine, the developers of Samourai Wallet agreed as part of a plea deal to transfer a total of 57.55 BTC worth $6.3 million to the U.S. Marshals Service ^[2]. An "Asset Liquidation Agreement" provided for the sale of the seized coins ^[2].

Blockchain data shows that the Bitcoin sum was already transferred to a Coinbase Prime address on November 3, whose balance currently stands at zero—an indication of a possible sale ^[2]. In a post on X, Lummis asked: "Why does the US government continue to liquidate BTC when the President explicitly ordered these assets to be preserved for our strategic Bitcoin reserve?" ^[2]

Contradictory Statements

The Senator emphasized: "We cannot afford to squander these strategic assets while other nations are hoarding Bitcoin" ^[2]. Lummis has been one of the first politicians in recent years to vigorously advocate for the crypto sector and Bitcoin in particular ^[2].

However, the U.S. Marshals Service denies the sale. In a statement to DL News, the agency said it "has not sold the mentioned Bitcoin" and has no knowledge of how Bitcoin Magazine obtained this information ^[2]. The agency also criticized that "neither fact-checking was conducted nor was information requested" ^[2].

Background on Samourai Wallet

Samourai was an application available on the Google Play Store for mixing coins, which allowed users to obscure their Bitcoin transactions. In 2024, US authorities arrested developers Keonne Rodriguez and William Lonergan Hill and shut down the website ^[2]. The US Department of Justice described the service as an "unlicensed money transmission business" that served criminals ^[2].