A New York resident identified as John Doe has sued Stake.com, Stake.us, Coinbase and related companies in New York State Supreme Court, accusing them of helping run years of illegal online gambling that he says started when he was still a child.
The case was filed in Manhattan. It says the plaintiff began using the defendants’ platforms while underage, kept gambling for years, and suffered serious financial and emotional fallout. “This case is about the promotion and operation of an illegal offshore gambling platform, Stake.com, to target and acquire minor users, including Plaintiff,” the filing states.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff says he used Stake.com and Primedice from ages 13 through 19. He says he lost his own savings, then turned to his father’s credit card without permission after running out of money. The suit says gambling damaged school performance, strained family relationships and disrupted the start of adult life.
The filing says the plaintiff was “unable to study or concentrate through high school because gambling was ‘the only thing that felt fun.’” It also says that after enrolling at Indiana University, he withdrew within a week because he had already lost his available funds and could not pay for food or necessities.
Underage gambling claims against Stake and Coinbase
Named defendants include Medium Rare N.V., which does business as Stake.com; Sweepsteaks Ltd., which does business as Stake.us; affiliated entities; founders Bijan Tehrani and Edward Craven; and Coinbase, Inc. plus Coinbase Global, Inc.
The lawsuit says Stake-related companies allowed minors to wager and used marketing designed to pull in younger users. It points to livestreams, celebrity endorsements and influencer promotions as tools used to build U.S. traffic.
Coinbase is described as a central payment bridge that allegedly let customers turn dollars into cryptocurrency and send funds to offshore gambling accounts. “Coinbase acts as its essential ‘cashier’s cage,’” the filing says.
The plaintiff says Coinbase kept his account active despite warning signs and continued handling transfers tied to gambling. The complaint adds that Coinbase “provided the compliance evasion mechanism necessary” for the gambling operation to bypass New York restrictions.
The filing arrives as pressure grows around sweepstakes casino operators. Recent New York action has moved to ban online sweepstakes casinos, while other lawsuits have challenged Stake.us advertising and legality. One Missouri case targeted Stake.us and promoters including Drake and Adin Ross, and another report noted a separate Stake.us dispute being sent to arbitration after a court decision involving sweepstakes platforms.
The complaint says the plaintiff has since been diagnosed with compulsive gambling disorder and panic disorder. It says he attends four Gamblers Anonymous meetings each week, spends about 10 hours weekly in therapy and works daily with a sponsor.
It also says his father now manages his finances, checks receipts and provides limited spending money to reduce relapse risk.
“This is a system built to recruit children and profit from their addiction,” said Seeger Weiss Senior Partner David Buchanan, who is part of the plaintiff’s legal team. “Our case lays out how these defendants built an illegal gambling pipeline — from the paid influencers who targeted children on gaming platforms, to the offshore casino that refused to verify their ages, to the crypto exchange that moved their money. Thankfully, the courts are the one place these defendants can’t VPN their way out of accountability.”
The plaintiff is seeking damages and injunctive relief under New York common law and consumer protection statutes. A jury trial has been demanded.
Featured image: Stake / Coinbase
The post New York lawsuit says Stake and Coinbase targeted child gambler for years appeared first on ReadWrite.
