ESS Frontier is suing the on-chain perpetual contract protocol Ostium and others for mandatory arbitration

ESS Frontier LLC filed a lawsuit on September 4, 2026, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, case number 1:26-cv-07645, against Ostium Foundation, Ostium Labs Co., Deltax LTD., DX Group Limited, Ostium co-founder and CEO Kaledora Kiernan-Linn, and John Doe Transferees 1-10. The nature of the case is arbitration matters under other statutes, with the cause of action being a petition for a mandatory arbitration order and the appointment of an arbitrator pursuant to 09 U.S.C. § 206.

The plaintiff also submitted a complaint, a motion for a temporary restraining order, a motion to seal limited materials, and related declarations. Public reports indicate that the lawsuit involves approximately $15 million in crypto loans, with ESS Frontier LLC suing as the assignee of the debt owed by Hong Kong lender Minghui Zheng. On September 14, the plaintiff submitted the first amended complaint, adding Minghui Zheng as a co-plaintiff. The court is scheduled to hold a hearing on September 17. Ostium is an on-chain perpetual contract protocol deployed on Arbitrum, providing leveraged trading for stocks, commodities, foreign exchange, and crypto assets.