Crypto.com petitions US court to uphold arbitration decision for mistakenly sent $50K

Crypto.com, a cryptocurrency exchange, has filed a petition with a Florida court to confirm an arbitration judgment in its favor. The exchange mistakenly deposited $50,000 into a user’s account in June 2022 and received no response despite multiple requests to return the funds.

In October 2022, Crypto.com initiated arbitration proceedings, accusing the user, James Deutero McJunkins, of civil theft and breach of contract. The arbitrator ruled in favor of Crypto.com in April 2023, awarding the exchange a total of $76,391.46. This amount included the original $50,000 deposit, $1,786.11 in statutory interest, $21,205.35 in attorneys’ fees, and $3,400 in arbitration costs.

Despite winning the arbitration, Crypto.com faced difficulty in enforcing the payment from McJunkins. As a result, the exchange turned to federal court for assistance. In its July 6 petition, Crypto.com asked the Florida court to confirm the arbitrator’s award and enter a final judgment against McJunkins for the outstanding amount.

This incident bears similarities to another case involving Crypto.com and two users based in Australia in May 2021. The exchange inadvertently transferred over $6 million to the couple’s account and only discovered the mistake in December 2021. The pair allegedly spent a significant portion of the funds, claiming they believed it was a prize from the exchange. The Australian authorities charged them with theft, and the legal proceedings are still ongoing.

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