Kevin O’Leary wins $2.8m award in defamation ruling

Businessman and television personality Kevin O’Leary has been awarded $2.8 million in a federal defamation lawsuit against prominent crypto influencer Ben “BitBoy” Armstrong after a judge handed down a default judgment against the defendant for failing to mount a substantive defence. The ruling by a US District Court judge in Florida came after Armstrong published a series of false and defamatory claims online that accused O’Leary of murder in connection with a 2019 boating accident, claims the court found to be made with actual malice and without factual basis.

Judge Beth Bloom, writing for the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida in Miami, granted the damages after Armstrong did not file a meaningful response to the lawsuit, effectively conceding liability. The judgment included roughly $78,000 in reputational damages, $750,000 for mental anguish and about $2 million in punitive damages as the court sought to hold Armstrong accountable for spreading malicious falsehoods that significantly affected O’Leary’s professional and personal life.

The lawsuit centred on a string of social media posts Armstrong made on the platform X in March 2025, where he repeatedly labelled O’Leary a “real-life murderer” and claimed both he and his wife had paid millions to conceal their supposed role in the fatal accident on Lake Joseph, Canada. In one of the posts, Armstrong published O’Leary’s personal phone number and urged followers to contact “a real life murderer,” an action the judge noted had caused O’Leary to receive unwanted communications and forced him to increase security measures.

O’Leary’s complaint highlighted that his wife, Linda O’Leary, was charged with careless operation of a vessel after the 2019 accident in which two people died, but was acquitted following a trial in Canada. O’Leary himself was never charged. Court documents described Armstrong’s postings as deliberate falsehoods intended to damage O’Leary’s reputation and attract attention to the influencer’s own troubles in the crypto sphere.

The default judgment underscores a decisive legal setback for Armstrong, whose public profile has been marred by a series of controversies and legal entanglements over the past few years. Once a significant voice in the cryptocurrency community with millions of followers, Armstrong’s influence has waned amid internal disputes at his former media company and multiple arrests on harassment and legal process-related charges. These issues have drawn scrutiny to the risks associated with high-profile crypto influencers, particularly when their commentary extends into personal attacks and unverified claims.

Armstrong’s ousting from the crypto media firm he co-founded came after allegations of substance abuse and erratic behaviour, leading to his removal from the company’s leadership. His attempts to remain prominent on social media and in the broader crypto discourse were hampered by legal challenges, including arrests in both Georgia and Florida tied to harassment allegations and conduct related to his legal battles.

O’Leary, known for his appearances on television and as an investor, has said in public comments that false allegations such as those made against him can have wide-ranging consequences, not just for individuals but for public discourse around business and finance. The damages awarded by the court reflect both the tangible impact on O’Leary’s reputation and the punitive aspect of deterring similar defamatory conduct in digital spaces where misinformation can spread rapidly.

Legal analysts note that default judgments of this kind are relatively rare and typically arise when a defendant chooses not to engage with the legal process, leading a court to accept the plaintiff’s claims as uncontested and to award damages accordingly. Armstrong’s absence of a formal defence placed the court in a position to assess the harm caused by the defamatory statements and to determine appropriate compensation without the counterbalance of rebuttal evidence.