A Missouri man has filed a lawsuit against Drake, streamer Adin Ross, and the online gambling platform Stake’s parent company, Sweepstakes Limited, for allegedly promoting illegal online gambling.
As detailed in court documents obtained by Complex, Missouri man Justin Killham alleged in his lawsuit that Stake, which launched in the U.S. even when online casino gambling remains blocked or heavily regulated in select states, opened a gambling platform that is “openly violating … Missouri state gaming and consumer protection laws.” The platform, Stake.us, is “marketed to Missourians as a so-called ‘social casino,’” the lawsuit alleges, arguing that it is a “virtual clone” of Stake’s main website, Stake.com.
The lawsuit claims that Stake has engaged in “deceptive trade practices” that “have inflicted severe harm on the vulnerable in Missouri,” particularly younger consumers or those with gambling addiction issues. Killham accused the company of flooding social media with advertisements and videos from “influencers” promoting its allegedly illegal gambling in the stake. Drake and Kick streamer Adin Ross are accused of being two of the biggest culprits in promoting Stake.
“Stake in particular pays online influencer-defendants Adin Ross and Aubrey Drake Graham each millions of dollars yearly to engage in promotion ‘livestream online casino gambling with Stake.com,” the lawsuit reads, accusing Ross and Drake of claiming they gamble with their own money and don’t disclose they’re using Stake-provided funds.
“These acts are deceptive, fraudulent and unfair and violate Missouri law,” the suit adds. “Drake and Ross deceptively and fraudulently misrepresent, as does Stake itself, that Stake is a social casino and not a real one in their promotional role for Stake, and they also fraudulently and deceptively misrepresent that they only gamble with their own money on Stake.”
Killham is seeking “recovery of gambling losses” on behalf of himself and others impacted by Stake, Drake, and Ross.
The lawsuit also breaks down how Stake seemingly circumvents Missouri law.
“To hide the true nature of its online gambling operation, Stake asserts that the only chips it sells to consumers are tokens called ‘Gold Coins,’ which can only be used for ‘casual’ gameplay on the Stake.us platform, have no real-world value, and can never be cashed out,” the lawsuit reads. “However, Stake bundles every purchase of Gold Coins with a second type of token called ‘Stake Cash’ as a supposedly free bonus. Unlike Gold Coins, Stake Cash can be wagered on casino games and cashed out for real money at a fixed 1:1 ratio to the U.S. Dollar – exposing Stake Cash as a clear vehicle for real-money gambling.”
The lawsuit argues that Stake Cash, which can be wagered on games over the internet and redeemed for real money, allows the company to get away with “operating an unlicensed and illegal online casino in Missouri.”
A spokesperson for Stake told SiGMA News that the company denies the allegations and asserts that it has not been served the 34-page complaint. “We reject allegations that have been made in the media in relation to this potential claim and will vigorously defend this and all such claims,” the spokesperson said.