BitMEX sued in UK for $27 million in Bitcoin over unlicensed derivatives
A UK software engineer is asking the High Court to void 1,053 losing perpetual swap trades and return the Bitcoin he lost on the now-closed exchange
A UK software engineer has filed a claim in London’s High Court against HDR Global Trading Limited, the company that operated BitMEX. He wants back roughly £20 million worth of Bitcoin, a sum pegged at about $27 million.
His argument is not that he traded badly. It is that he should never have been allowed to trade at all, and that the law therefore entitles him to his losses back.
The claim, in detail
The claimant is Lewis Barber. His case targets 1,053 perpetual swap trades that lost money, all placed on BitMEX between 2018 and 2022.
The core of Barber’s case rests on the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. He alleges that BitMEX carried out regulated investment activity in the UK without authorization from the Financial Conduct Authority.
If that is true, his lawyers argue, the contracts are void. A void contract is treated as though it never legally existed, which would entitle Barber to restitution for what he lost.
The claim also frames the trades as mis-sold. It goes further still, accusing the exchange of deceit.
Why the timing is awkward for BitMEX
The filing lands shortly after BitMEX stopped trading. The exchange ceased operations on September 23, 2026, following a strategic review by its board.
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Barber’s case is one of several legal challenges now aimed at the firm, including claims tied to allegedly improper liquidations.
The case remains at an early stage. BitMEX has yet to receive formal notice of the claim, so no response from the company has entered the record.
Barber’s legal team is not framing this as a one-off dispute. They say a win could open the door to similar claims from other UK users.
By their estimate, that could expose BitMEX to liabilities running into the hundreds of millions of pounds. That figure is the claimant side’s projection, not a finding by any court.
The regulatory backstory
BitMEX and UK regulators are not strangers. The exchange received a warning notice from the FCA back in March 2020, an episode that forms part of the backdrop to Barber’s case.
One name conspicuously absent from the defendant list is Ben Delo. The BitMEX co-founder, who is a notable donor to the political party Reform UK, is not named in the claim.
The suit is aimed squarely at the corporate operator, HDR Global Trading Limited.