Celsius bankruptcy liquidation party sues BitMEX, claiming 495 million USD

The liquidator of the bankrupt cryptocurrency lending platform Celsius Network has sued BitMEX, accusing it of fraud and market manipulation during forced liquidations in March 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, seeking the return of 6,360 BTC, equivalent to approximately $495 million at current prices. The lawsuit was filed on September 12 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York by the litigation manager appointed in the Celsius bankruptcy case, Blockchain Recovery Investment Consortium.

The defendants include five entities: HDR Global Trading, ABS Global Trading, Shine Effort, 100x Holdings, and HDR Global Services, registered across Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Seychelles, and the United States. Celsius claims it lost 1,325.84 BTC during a liquidation on March 12, 2020, and is seeking to recover debts transferred by the investment fund JST, which lost 5,034.33 BTC the following day. The positions held by both could only be profitable when Bitcoin was rising or stable, and the lawsuit alleges that BitMEX simultaneously controlled the system that decided when customers were liquidated and the insurance fund that profited from the liquidations.

The allegations have not yet been verified, and this is the second lawsuit BitMEX has faced since announcing its liquidation in July; the exchange will cease trading on September 23.