Burwick Law names Solana and Jito executives in expanded RICO case against Pump

Law firms Burwick Law and Wolf Popper have expanded their lawsuit against memecoin generator Pump to include the Solana Foundation, Solana Labs, and Jito, as well as several high-ranking individuals in the Solana ecosystem, including network co-creators Anatoly Yakovenko and Raj Gokal. 

In an amended complaint filed on Wednesday, the law firms allege RICO claims against Yakovenko and Gokal as well as Solana Foundation Executive Director Dan Albert, President Lily Liu, and former communications lead Austin Federa. 

The firms also sued Jito CEO Lucas Bruder and COO Brian Smith as well as Pump co-founders Alon Cohen, Dylan Kerler, and Noah Bernhard Hugo Tweedale. Pump, run by the UK-based Baton Corporation, and the Solana Foundation failed to immediately respond when reached for comment. A Jito representative declined to comment. 

“The claims against defendants in this matter include RICO claims (predicated on illegal gambling, wire fraud, intellectual property theft, and unlicensed money transmission), Securities claims, and NY GBL 349 & 350 claims,” Burwick wrote on X.

"At every level—from token design to fee extraction, to infrastructure maintenance and validator orchestration—Solana Labs and Jito Labs were knowing, intentional participants in the conduct at issue," the plaintiffs wrote. "They are not bystanders to fraud. They are its architects, beneficiaries, and co-conspirators."

RICO claims stem from the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, a U.S. federal law passed in 1970 to combat organized crime. It enables prosecutors to target individuals or groups by tying together disparate crimes into a single case. 

Plaintiffs' argument

According to the filing, the firms allege that Pump “is operating in clear violation of multiple U.S. financial crime prevention statutes and regulations” including Section 311 of the USA PATRIOT Act, the Bank Secrecy Act, FinCEN rules, OFAC sanctions rules, and state money transmitter licensing requirements.

“By refusing to verify user identities, failing to monitor or report suspicious transactions, and neglecting any formal AML program, Pump.Fun exposes the public to severe risks of criminal exploitation—facilitating money laundering, terrorist financing, sex trafficking, and other serious crimes,” the plaintiffs wrote. 

Notably, the plaintiffs argue that Pump's lack of controls enabled the North Korean hacking collective Lazarus Group to allegedly launder funds stolen during the $1.5 billion Bybit hack by launching the “QinShihuang” memecoin.

The lawyers also accused Pump of “knowingly” facilitating the creation and promotion of “tokens that exploit hate speech, violence, and exploitation to generate attention and trading volume” and trademark violations. 

In a June filing, Judge Colleen McMahon consolidated an earlier class action brought against Pump by investors in the PNUT memecoin. The lead plaintiffs in the new case are Diego Aguilar, Kendall Carnahan, and Lead Plaintiff Michael Okafor. 

“This action is brought by, and on behalf of, victims of a coordinated racketeering enterprise designed to simulate the functions of a digital casino operated illegally under the guise of meme coin creation and trading,” the complaint reads. “In truth, Pump.fun is merely the front-facing slot machine cabinet, operated as part of a broader illegal gambling and money transmission scheme engineered and maintained jointly by” Pump, Jito, and Solana leadership.

Pump developments

The lawsuit notes that Pump has generated $722.85 million from its “illegal gambling enterprise,” which uses a bonding curve to allegedly exploit users. Meanwhile, the plaintiffs argue Jito Labs “monitored the spins and intercepted profitable transactions – the ‘winning spins’ – and sent them to whoever bribed them the most.”

Last month, Pump parent company retained several high-profile attorneys with international law firm Brown Rudnick to bolster its defense. Pump’s legal team includes veteran crypto attorney Stephen D. Palley and former SEC investigator Daniel L. Sachs.

Burwick, which specializes in digital asset litigation, is also leading lawsuits against other crypto platforms and memecoin creators, including influencer Haliey Welch of “Hawk Tuah” infamy.

The expanded suit comes amid a series of developments for Pump, which recently introduced a native PUMP token and made its first corporate acquisition. In July, rival memecoin generator LetsBONK surpassed Pump in token launches for the first time.

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