Woman Loses $8 Million In Crypto Scam, But Court Says Binance Is Not Liable

A United States District Judge, Amos Mazzant, has ruled that Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by client count, is not liable for the loss incurred by a Texan woman named Divya Gadasalli who lost $8 million in a pig butchering scheme.

In a ruling on May 22, Judge Amos dismissed the lawsuit that Gadasalli had brought forward in which she claimed that Binance aided the scammer steal $8 million in a scheme hatched on Tinder, a dating app.

Binance filed for the case to be dismissed at the United States Easter District Court of Texas, saying the plaintiff had failed to state a claim. Moreover, Binance lawyers say there was a lack of personal jurisdiction and this request was made in June 2022.

The ruling on May 22, Judge Amos said, complied with Federal rules that require a court to dismiss a claim should there be no personal jurisdiction over the defendant, in this case, Binance. 

In law, personal jurisdiction empowers the court to hear a case, regardless of the subject matter. And afterward, they can make a ruling. 

Despite Binance’s position that there is no personal jurisdiction, Gadasalli’s lawyers wanted the court to investigate the relationship between Binance and Binance US.

Court filings show that Gadasalli had been scammed off $8 million after being “promised romance and financial prosperity” in a pig butchering scam.

In a pig butchering scam, the victim engages in a well-orchestrated fraud where romance is used as bait for active investment in non-existent cryptocurrency schemes. Court data shows that the fraudulent scheme was devised by three defendants, Jerry Bulasa, Dong Lian, and Danyun Lin.

Gadasalli met Bulasa on Tinder and believed she had struck a romantic connection. Eventually, the victim ended up “investing in the direction of Bulasa,” whom she thought was a “successful cryptocurrency investor.”

Bulasa later informed Gadasalli that their crypto investment stood at $10 million, but she couldn’t withdraw any assets. This frustration and realization that she was down $8 million made her file a lawsuit against Bulasa and Binance.

Binance has been a target of United States regulators in recent months. In March, the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) sued the exchange for allegedly operating a derivatives trading platform without registration, violating existing trading laws. 

Meanwhile, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is reportedly investigating whether the exchange violates securities law. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is also investigating possible tax evasion claims.

Still, BNB, the native currency of the Binance ecosystem, is steady when writing. Although it is under pressure, the coin is trading above $300 and bullish, aligning with gains from March 2023. And BNB is currently up 15% from March 2023 lows.