Celsius Creditors Sue BitMEX for $495 Million Over Historic Bitcoin Crash

Celsius's creditors have sued BitMEX for $495 million in what is being seen as a significant move just days before the exchange's scheduled shutdown on September 23. The lawsuit, filed by Blockchain Recovery Investment Consortium (BRIC) on September 12 in the Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, accuses BitMEX of fraud, market manipulation, and wrongful liquidations during Bitcoin's historic collapse in March 2020.

During this event, the price of BTC plummeted from approximately $7,200 to around $5,678 in just 15 minutes, triggering mass liquidations of roughly $702 million on the platform. The creditors are seeking to recover 6,360 BTC that BitMEX allegedly seized unlawfully during this period.

The lawsuit is a significant development in the Celsius bankruptcy case, which has already set an important precedent with creditors reaching a $299.5 million settlement with Tether in October 2025.