Justin Sun sues billionaire collector David Geffen for $78.4 million

Odaily Planet Daily News Sun Yuchen sued billionaire collector David Geffen for the return of Alberto Giacometti's sculpture "Le Nez", claiming that a rogue art advisor sold the work to Geffen through the careful planning of forged signatures and fictitious lawyers. Sun Yuchen, who bought "Le Nez" at Sotheby's for $78.4 million in 2021, claims that his former advisor Xiong Zihan Sydney orchestrated the deal without his consent, forged documents, and even posed as a lawyer via email to push the deal. Now Sun Yuchen wants his sculpture back, "or a huge compensation." Geffen's lawyer Tibor L. Nagy said the lawsuit was "absurd and baseless" and suggested that Sun Yuchen simply regretted the deal. The complaint does not contain any allegations that Geffen had any connection or relationship with Xiong. “The deal was brokered through an intermediary,” Nagy said, “and if Sun is unhappy with the deal brokered for him a year later, then there is no basis for a claim against Geffen.” Sun filed the lawsuit in Manhattan federal court on Tuesday, alleging that despite his expressed interest in selling “L’Energie” for a profit, he never authorized Xiong to complete any transaction. Nonetheless, Xiong allegedly brokered a deal with Geffen’s representatives between January and March 2024 through art dealers David and Cole Tunkl. In the deal, the sculpture was exchanged for two paintings valued at a total of $55 million, plus $10.5 million in cryptocurrency, far below Sun’s target price, and allegedly without his approval. In addition, the lawsuit alleges that Xiong used the cash portion of the deal to deceive Sun into using it as a “deposit” for a fictitious buyer, and that Xiong kept $500,000 for himself when he transferred funds from her crypto wallet to Sun’s. Sun claims he discovered this in December when he pressed Xiong about the lack of progress on the deal. Sun’s lawyers argue that Geffen’s team should have spotted “clear red flags” before taking action, chief among them Laura Chang, a lawyer Xiong allegedly hired to oversee the sale from a personal Gmail account. The complaint questions whether the lawyer actually existed. (ARTNews)