OKCoin Seeks Dismissal of Class Action Over Crypto Theft Claims
On Tuesday, April 29, 2025, Law360 reported that digital asset exchange OKCoin, along with its affiliates, urged a California federal judge to dismiss a proposed class action lawsuit accusing them of facilitating cryptocurrency theft. The defendants argued that the plaintiffs’ financial losses stemmed from the initial thefts, not from any actions taken by the exchange.
In an amended complaint filed earlier this month, plaintiffs Alister Watt and James Supples alleged that an investigation showed a significant portion of over $2 million in cryptocurrency stolen from them in 2023 and 2024 was transferred to accounts on OKX.com. They claimed that the entities operating the exchange—OKCoin USA Inc., Aux Cayes FinTech Co. Ltd., and OKC Holdings Corp.—failed to implement mandatory anti-money laundering measures that could have detected the illicit activity. The lawsuit includes claims under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act and accuses the exchange of aiding and abetting the conversion of stolen funds.
The defendants countered in a motion that the plaintiffs’ RICO claims lack merit because there is no direct link between the alleged misconduct and the plaintiffs’ losses. The motion argued that the described sequence of events does not satisfy the requirements for direct or proximate causation. It likened the exchange’s role to that of a taxi driver unknowingly transporting thieves, asserting that such a party is not responsible for the victims’ losses.
The complaint highlighted that in February, Aux Cayes, a foreign entity managing OKX operations outside the U.S., pleaded guilty to running an unlicensed money transmitting business in the U.S. from 2018 to at least early 2024, incurring penalties exceeding $500 million. However, the defendants’ motion contended that the court lacks jurisdiction over Aux Cayes and OKC Holdings, as the lawsuit does not demonstrate a domestic injury. It noted that the complaint fails to establish that the thieves operated from the U.S. or specifically targeted American victims, stating that the plaintiffs’ U.S. residency alone does not constitute a domestic injury.
According to Watt and Supples, OKX.com served as a repository for millions of dollars in stolen cryptocurrency, affecting U.S. users whose assets were taken from non-OKX wallets and moved to the platform’s accounts.
The motion to dismiss also pointed out that the plaintiffs’ legal counsel has pursued similar lawsuits against other cryptocurrency exchanges, such as Binance Holdings Ltd. and Kucoin Ltd., alleging comparable misconduct.
Source: Law360
