Florida Supreme Court Resurrects $80 Million Bitcoin Theft

The Florida appeals court allows the $80 million Bitcoin theft lawsuit against Binance, overturning an earlier dismissal decision.

A Florida man who lost $80 million in Bitcoin to scammers will get another chance to take legal action against Binance in state court.

This follows an appeal on Wednesday in which a court overturned an earlier dismissal.

Florida ruling revives Binance lawsuit

A Bloomberg report reveals that a judge has ruled that the crypto exchange can be sued locally for allegedly failing to prevent the stolen funds from being transferred.

The accuser, Jonny Chen, says he fell victim to a scam in 2022 in which 1,000 Bitcoin was withdrawn from his account. He further claims that he immediately notified Binance at the time and requested the platform to freeze the assets, but claims the company did not act quickly enough, allowing the funds to disappear.

The victim initially filed a negligence lawsuit in Florida, but the court dismissed the case on the grounds that it lacked jurisdiction because Binance is headquartered abroad. However, the recent appeal has now reopened the door to move forward.

The decision stated that Binance’s digital presence and business activities in Florida, including marketing to local users and offering services through the platform, were sufficient to establish legal jurisdiction.

The court wrote that Chen “will be given another opportunity to demonstrate his ability to sue Binance Holdings Inc. in state court for an alleged theft of $80 million worth of Bitcoin.” It also said the lower tribunal had erred when it decided not to hear the case.

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Jurisdictional disputes

This is not the first time a crypto company has delayed or disputed legal action by filing legal challenges.

Several major platforms have delayed or avoided lawsuits by arguing that regulators had no authority over them because of their registration abroad.

For example, in the case of BitMEX, US investors had accused the company of market manipulation and operating without proper licenses. However, the company countered that it was beyond the reach of the US because it was based in the Seychelles and had no physical footprint in the country, leading to delays and partial dismissals in the procedure.

KuCoin, another foreign-based operator, was sued in New York for allegedly offering unregistered securities. The company had initially disputed the case, insisting it had no major ties to the United States. Despite this, New York’s attorney general later relied on the Martin Act to move forward despite the company’s objections.

Bitfinex and its subsidiary Tether have also dealt with multiple claims regarding alleged market manipulation and transparency shortcomings, with the two initially challenging US authority, citing foreign incorporation. Despite this, some lawsuits eventually proceeded and resulted in settlements.