Taisu Ventures Web3 Fund Limited Partnership v. Pierina Merino et al.

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

TAISU VENTURES WEB3 FUND Case No. 2:25-cv-11462-SB-SSC

LIMITED PARTNERSHIP,

Plaintiff,

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE RE

v. SUBJECT-MATTER

JURISDICTION

PIERINA MERINO et al.,

Defendants.

Plaintiff Taisu Ventures Web3 Fund Limited Partnership, a venture capital fund, invested a million dollars in Defendant FlickPlay, Inc. in exchange for future equity. Plaintiff alleges that in late 2025, FlickPlay and its founder, Defendant Pierina Merino, attempted to recapitalize with a new investor to diminish the value of Plaintiff’s shares and, when Plaintiff objected, threatened to publicize that Plaintiff was attempting to bankrupt FlickPlay and purchase its assets. Defendants then allegedly made defamatory statements about Plaintiff to multiple media sources and to Plaintiff’s investors. Plaintiff filed this action, alleging claims for breach of the investment agreements, defamation, civil extortion, and intentional interference with economic relations (IIER). The complaint also includes a single claim for violation of the Securities Exchange Act (SEA), predicated on false capitalization…