Lawsuit claims BitMEX used server freezes and internal trading to seize 622 Bitcoin ahead of its September closure
BitMEX customers are seeking the return of 622.66 Bitcoin in a proposed class action that accuses the exchange of engineering liquidations and retaining traders’ collateral.
The complaint, filed July 23 in the Southern District of New York, arrived as BitMEX began a regulator-approved wind-down ahead of its September closure.
BitMEX shutdown gives traders 2 months to withdraw, but active positions face an earlier deadline BKX Services Inc. alleges it lost at least 305.809 BTC through BitMEX liquidations in 2018, while David Namdar claims 316.856 BTC in losses from 2019 to 2020. Together they seek the coins themselves, rather than only their dollar value, under claims for replevin and fraud.
The suit names BitMEX operator HDR Global Trading Limited and four affiliated companies: ABS Global Trading Limited, 100x Holdings Limited, Shine Effort Inc Limited and HDR Global Services (Bermuda) Limited. Co-founders Arthur Hayes, Samuel Reed and Benjamin Delo are also defendants, along with Gregory Dwyer.
The plaintiffs allege BitMEX’s liquidation engine closed positions when unrealized losses reached about half of the collateral traders had posted. According to the filing, that left collateral worth roughly twice the losses, but BitMEX seized the remainder and transferred it to its Insurance Fund instead of returning it.
The complaint further alleges that an undisclosed internal trading desk could see customer positions, hidden orders and liquidation points. It claims the desk used anonymized accounts and could continue trading during server freezes that locked ordinary customers out, while also trading on reference exchanges to induce price moves that triggered liquidations. The allegations have not been proven in court.
BitMEX CEO Denies Allegations of Trading Against Customers BitMEX CEO Peter Wilkinson rejected the case in comments to Benzinga, calling it “spurious and opportunistic” and saying the company would defend itself vigorously. The filing revisits conduct covered by an earlier BitMEX class action brought in 2020 under the Commodity Exchange Act.
That case was voluntarily dismissed without prejudice in June 2025, without a ruling on the merits. The new action instead pleads replevin and fraud and argues that the earlier case paused the applicable limitations period. The Financial Services Authority of Seychelles said HDR voluntarily withdrew its pending virtual-asset licence application on July 23.
The regulator-approved plan limits HDR to winding down operations, closing positions and returning client-held assets before exchange services cease on Sept. 23. BitMEX’s closure notice says users will retain access after that date to view balances and withdraw funds, and the company says its assets exceed its liabilities.
The wind-down plan covers client-held assets but is silent on Bitcoin disputed through historical liquidations, so the shutdown adds urgency to the ownership question without establishing that jurisdiction, the case or recovery has been impaired.
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