BitMEX Accused of Seizing $64,857 in BTC Ahead of Shutdown

A class action lawsuit claims that BitMEX seized 622 BTC from customers ahead of its September closure. The plaintiffs, BKX Services Inc. and David Namdar, allege that BitMEX's liquidation engine closed positions when unrealized losses reached about half of the collateral traders had posted.

The complaint alleges that this left collateral worth roughly twice the losses, but BitMEX seized the remainder and transferred it to its Insurance Fund instead of returning it. The plaintiffs further claim that an internal trading desk could see customer positions, hidden orders, and liquidation points, and used anonymized accounts to trade on reference exchanges to induce price moves that triggered liquidations.

The lawsuit names BitMEX operator HDR Global Trading Limited and four affiliated companies as defendants, along with co-founders Arthur Hayes, Samuel Reed, and Benjamin Delo. The plaintiffs seek the return of 622.66 BTC, rather than just their dollar value, under claims for replevin and fraud.