Michaela
A Florida appeals court has revived a lawsuit claiming Binance failed to recover $80 million in stolen Bitcoin, signaling potential U.S. legal accountability for crypto platform security lapses.
Key Points
- Florida appeals court reinstates $80M Bitcoin lawsuit against Binance.
- Binance allegedly failed to freeze stolen funds, enabling asset movement.
- The case raises pressure on offshore crypto exchanges over U.S. accountability.
Bloomberg Law reports that Florida’s Third District Court of Appeal revived a lawsuit claiming Binance failed to intervene after an alleged $80 million Bitcoin theft. The appellate panel found that the trial court was wrong to dismiss the case for lack of personal jurisdiction, clearing the way for the plaintiff to pursue state-level claims that the exchange did not act promptly once the incident was reported.
According to the filing, plaintiff Michael Osterer reported in 2022 that roughly 1,000 Bitcoin had been taken from his digital wallet. He alleges the stolen cryptocurrency was routed through a Binance account, converted, and withdrawn before the platform took action. Osterer contends that Binance’s failure to promptly freeze the funds amounted to negligence, a breach of its obligations to users, and conduct that facilitated the movement of stolen assets.
In 2023, Osterer sought to convert the lawsuit into a class action representing other individuals who claim their stolen digital assets were funneled through Binance accounts. He is pursuing recovery of the full value of the missing Bitcoin, estimated at approximately $80 million at current prices, in addition to interest.
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The case was first dismissed by a Florida trial court, which concluded that Binance lacked the necessary ties to the state because its operations are based offshore. The appeals court reversed that decision, finding that Binance’s U.S.-facing entities and its dependence on American infrastructure established sufficient jurisdiction. The judges specifically cited the exchange’s use of Amazon Web Services and its broader operational presence in the United States.
Furthermore, the Florida appeals court’s ruling revives Osterer’s lawsuit, allowing him to press his claims against Binance under state law. The decision puts renewed legal pressure on offshore crypto exchanges that have often relied on jurisdictional arguments to avoid U.S. lawsuits over stolen assets. Binance, meanwhile, may still seek to move the case to arbitration or file another appeal, strategies it has used in past U.S. legal disputes.
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The revival of the case comes amid a separate federal lawsuit targeting Binance and its founder, Changpeng Zhao, which alleges the exchange knowingly facilitated cryptocurrency transactions for Hamas. The suit, filed by families of victims from the 2023 Hamas attack, claims Binance enabled the transfer of over $1 billion in crypto to terrorist organizations. Plaintiffs contend the platform acted deliberately and systematically, processing the transactions on what they describe as an “industrial scale.”
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MICHAELA
Michaela is a news writer focused on cryptocurrency and blockchain topics. She prioritizes rigorous research and accuracy to uncover interesting angles and ensure engaging reporting. A lifelong book lover, she applies her passion for reading to deeply explore the constantly evolving crypto world.
