D'Aloia v Persons Unknown: A Landmark Judgment On Tracing Crypto Fraud

Those following developments in the crypto space will be familiar with D'Aloia. In a judgment spanning over 80-pages handed down on 12 September 2024, and the first following a fully contested trial, the High Court of England and Wales dismissed a claim brought by the Claimant, Fabrizio D'Aloia, against Bitkub Online Co Ltd ("Bitkub"), a crypto exchange which offers customers custodial digital wallet services for cryptocurrency, including Tether ("USDT"). The decision is of importance for victims of crypto fraud – shedding light on how they might legally recover digital assets across various jurisdictions. Before diving into the detail, we set out below the key points for crypto exchanges and practitioners arising out of the judgment relating to potential liability of exchanges to victims of crypto-fraud and the presentation of pleadings and expert evidence, which was arguably was at the heart of why the claim failed.