Non-fungible tokens (NFT) sold at just the right time? Ajax Amsterdam footballers Davy Klaassen and Daley Blind are accused of selling Sorare cards of their teammate André Onana because they had confidential information. This could amount to insider trading and has forced Sorare to speak out on the matter.
Blind and Klaassen sell Sorare cards at right time
As a reminder, cards in the Sorare blockchain game are NFTs, and these gain or lose value based on player performance and matches. The problem is that the players in question, who often own cards themselves, would have advance information and could therefore buy and sell these NFTs in a timely manner.
This seems to be the case with the players Klaassen and Blind, who play for Ajax Amsterdam. Last week it was announced that their regular goalkeeper, André Onana, would not be playing in the Dutch Cup final. The news came as a surprise to many commentators… Except the two players, apparently.
Klaassen and Blind sold their André Onana card three days before the final, even though the change had not yet been announced. They also bought the card of his replacement, Marten Stekelenburg, although it was not particularly quoted before the announcement.
Insider trading?
The service offered by Sorare is relatively new, so there is no precedent for this type of case. But it may be similar to insider trading. As a reminder, insider trading exists when investors use privileged or confidential information, which is not accessible to other investors.
Sensing trouble ahead, Sorare has in any case reacted through one of its managers, who said this week:
We have discussed all this internally. We are working on it and we will take measures to prevent this situation from happening again. “
In France, people who commit insider trading on the stock market risk imprisonment, and very heavy fines. So does this rule also apply to game NFTs like Sorare? For the moment, this does not seem to be the case, but it is likely that the regulators will soon look into the matter…
