A British software engineer wants 324.8 BTC back from Bitmex, claiming the cryptocurrency exchange had no legal authority to offer him derivatives trading in the United Kingdom. His demand, worth approximately $26 million using today’s exchange rates, targets more than 1,000 losing trades.

Lewis Barber, a software engineer from Chelford, Cheshire, has reportedly filed a High Court claim in London against HDR Global Trading Limited, the Seychelles-incorporated company behind Bitmex. The Guardian and The Mirror reported on the proceedings, which challenge the legality of derivatives transactions conducted between 2018 and 2022.

The reports say that Barber wasn’t exactly a casual customer. Across five accounts, he allegedly executed approximately 2,294 trades, but his legal challenge focuses exclusively on 1,053 transactions that lost money. Every disputed position involved perpetual swaps, derivatives contracts that allow traders to speculate on cryptocurrency prices without an expiration date.

Bitmex pioneered perpetual swaps in cryptocurrency trading, introducing the now-ubiquitous derivatives contracts that would become one of the industry’s most heavily traded financial instruments. The reports detail that the requested restitution amounts to 324.8 BTC, valued at approximately $26.5 million on Oct. 14, 2026. Barber is seeking the original bitcoin in-kind or equivalent damages and interest.

The legal argument centers on Britain’s Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA). Barber contends that Bitmex conducted regulated financial activities without authorization from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), potentially rendering the disputed contracts unenforceable against him.

His lawyers also allege deceit, negligent misrepresentation, and mistake, arguing that Bitmex represented itself as legally entitled to conduct the transactions.

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