Five years after a series of delistings, a legal case involving a specific token from 2019 is still ongoing, with authorities in the United Kingdom initiating legal proceedings against six companies.
The United Kingdom’s Competition Appeal Tribunal recently began hearings on June 5th regarding the delisting of the forked cryptocurrency Bitcoin SV (BSV) in 2019 by six exchanges. Among the defendants are major crypto exchanges like Binance’s European branch, Binance Europe Services, as well as Erik Voorhees’ ShapeShift, Kraken (represented as Payward), the Bitcoin exchange Bittylicious, and associated entities.
According to information from BitMEX Research, each of the six defendants has their own legal team, resulting in a significant number of lawyers involved in the case and a substantial amount of documentation. The tribunal anticipates that the collective proceedings order (CPO) will take approximately three days to complete.
Bitcoin SV, a blockchain and cryptocurrency that split from Bitcoin Cash in 2018, was spearheaded by the controversial figure claiming to be Satoshi Nakamoto, Craig Wright. The split in the Bitcoin Cash community led to various factions supporting different forked coins, with Roger Ver, Bitmain, Binance, and Coinbase backing Bitcoin ABC.
The lawsuit revisits the scandal surrounding the delisting of BSV in April 2019, with exchanges like Binance and Kraken providing vague reasons for their decisions. Kraken cited behavior that was contradictory to their values and the broader crypto community, while Binance simply stated that BSV no longer met their standards.
In 2022, Binance, Kraken, and other exchanges found themselves facing a $12 billion class-action lawsuit in the UK over the BSV delistings, with plaintiffs seeking compensation for missed growth opportunities. The plaintiffs claim that those who held BSV after the delistings in 2019 are owed $9 billion in compensation.
The ongoing legal battle highlights the complexities of the cryptocurrency industry and the repercussions of delistings on token holders.