Eight months after Trump's pardon, CZ hit by 1,692 UK retail investors in London
TL;DR
1,692 UK retail investors sued Binance and CZ in London's High Court on July 1, seeking £150M for unauthorized crypto derivatives sold from late 2019 until the FCA's 2021 ban.
1,692 UK retail investors filed suit against Binance and founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) in London's High Court on July 1, seeking at least £150 million (~$200 million) in damages. The claim is run by law firm KP Law, and names four defendants: Cayman-registered Binance Holdings, UAE-registered Nest Exchange, CZ personally, and a group described as «persons unknown» operating the platform behind the scenes.
The disputed products are leveraged tokens, futures and options — the class of derivatives UK retail investors are not supposed to touch. The claimants say Binance began marketing these to UK retail from late 2019, a full two years before the Financial Conduct Authority formally banned the practice on January 6, 2021. In that window Binance held zero UK derivatives authorisation. The filing includes individual retail losses in the tens of thousands of pounds.
The timing is the story. CZ pleaded guilty in the US in 2023 to anti-money-laundering and sanctions violations, paid a $4.3 billion settlement, served four months in prison and handed the Binance CEO seat to Richard Teng. In October 2025 the White House issued Trump's personal pardon. Eight months later, 1,692 UK writs land on the same person — the US book is closed; the UK one just opened.
Binance's line on the suit is a template: «Binance remains committed to its obligations to users and to operating in accordance with applicable law.» The spokesperson declined to address KP Law's specific allegations.
If it works, London's High Court sides with Binance, Trump's pardon extends into a de facto international shield, and the last major open legal front closes. If it doesn't, £150 million is just the first invoice — class-action firms in Germany, France and Singapore have been reading this filing all week.
via South China Morning Post / crypto.news / Crypto Briefing / Insurance Journal
The disputed products are leveraged tokens, futures and options — the class of derivatives UK retail investors are not supposed to touch. The claimants say Binance began marketing these to UK retail from late 2019, a full two years before the Financial Conduct Authority formally banned the practice on January 6, 2021. In that window Binance held zero UK derivatives authorisation. The filing includes individual retail losses in the tens of thousands of pounds.
The timing is the story. CZ pleaded guilty in the US in 2023 to anti-money-laundering and sanctions violations, paid a $4.3 billion settlement, served four months in prison and handed the Binance CEO seat to Richard Teng. In October 2025 the White House issued Trump's personal pardon. Eight months later, 1,692 UK writs land on the same person — the US book is closed; the UK one just opened.
Binance's line on the suit is a template: «Binance remains committed to its obligations to users and to operating in accordance with applicable law.» The spokesperson declined to address KP Law's specific allegations.
If it works, London's High Court sides with Binance, Trump's pardon extends into a de facto international shield, and the last major open legal front closes. If it doesn't, £150 million is just the first invoice — class-action firms in Germany, France and Singapore have been reading this filing all week.
via South China Morning Post / crypto.news / Crypto Briefing / Insurance Journal
