Share this article
Coinbase Loses Bid to Force Arbitration in Crypto Theft Lawsuit
The U.S. District Court for Northern California found the exchange's arbitration agreement to be "unconscionable and ... unenforceable."
Updated May 11, 2023, 4:04 p.m. Published Apr 12, 2022, 2:57 p.m.
Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase (COIN) has lost its bid to force arbitration in a lawsuit over the theft of a user's crypto worth over $31,000.
- Abraham Bielski was contacted by a scammer last year claiming to be a PayPal (PYPL) representative. Bielski gave the individual remote access to his Coinbase account from which assets worth $31,039 were transferred.
- The plaintiff claimed Coinbase's customer service after the money was removed from his digital wallet was "meager and ineffective."
- Bielski sought to pursue the case as a class-action lawsuit, representing individuals who had experienced something similar with the crypto exchange.
- Coinbase moved to compel arbitration based on its user agreement, which states "any dispute arising out of or relating to this Agreement or the Coinbase Services ... shall be resolved by binding arbitration."
- The U.S. District Court for Northern California has deemed the user agreement “imposes a burdensome and unfair pre-arbitration dispute process on users and sends their complaints, but not Coinbase’s complaints, to binding arbitration."
- The "lack of mutuality" in the complaint process therefore "imposes and onerous, unfair burden" on the party bringing it, according to the court. Therefore, the court found the arbitration agreement "unconscionable and ... unenforceable."
Read more: IDEG Asset Management Partners With Coinbase Prime to Launch Actively Managed ETH Fund
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters
More For You
KuCoin captured a record share of centralised exchange volume in 2025, with more than $1.25tn traded as its volumes grew faster than the wider crypto market.
What to know:
- KuCoin recorded over $1.25 trillion in total trading volume in 2025, equivalent to an average of roughly $114 billion per month, marking its strongest year on record.
- This performance translated into an all-time high share of centralised exchange volume, as KuCoin’s activity expanded faster than aggregate CEX volumes, which slowed during periods of lower market volatility.
- Spot and derivatives volumes were evenly split, each exceeding $500 billion for the year, signalling broad-based usage rather than reliance on a single product line.
- Altcoins accounted for the majority of trading activity, reinforcing KuCoin’s role as a primary liquidity venue beyond BTC and ETH at a time when majors saw more muted turnover.
- Even as overall crypto volumes softened mid-year, KuCoin maintained elevated baseline activity, indicating structurally higher user engagement rather than short-lived volume spikes.
More For You
Tom Lee urges BitMine shareholders to approve share increase ahead of January 14 vote
The chairman of the former bitcoin miner-turned-ether treasury firm reiterated his view that Ethereum is the future of finance.
What to know:
- Tom Lee, chairman of Bitmine Immersion (BMNR), urged shareholders to approve an increase in the company's authorized share count from 500 million to 50 billion.
- Lee assured shareholders that the increase is not intended to dilute shares, but instead to enable capital raising, dealmaking, and future share splits.
- Shareholders have until January 14 to vote on the proposal, with the annual meeting scheduled for January 15 in Las Vegas.
Top Stories
