Departed from his post as head of BitMEX, Alexander Heptner, filed a lawsuit against the operator of the crypto-derivatives exchange for $3.4 million. The plaintiff alleges the company engaged in unlawful termination and breach of the terms of the employment contract, The Block reports.
The amount does not include moral damages.
The defendant is Three Fins Pte Ltd — the Singapore arm of the Seychelles-registered HDR Global Ltd, behind BitMEX.
The hearing is scheduled for January 25.
According to the plaintiff’s representatives, the company withheld salaries and bonuses after his departure, alleging Heptner used his position to improperly siphon off $230,000 to finance relocations to Singapore and Germany. In this way, the exchange operator allegedly deprived the former CEO of multimillion-dollar compensation.
The relocation-related expenditures, according to an ‘internal investigation,’ formed the basis for his ‘dismissal for cause,’ according to a statement to the High Court of Singapore.
“The post-factum investigation was nothing more than HDR Group’s attempt to cut costs at all levels, despite the relocation issue having been properly resolved.”, according to the statement.
Founded in 2014, BitMEX was among the first to offer cryptocurrency-based derivatives. Over time, the company faced regulatory problems, one consequence of which was a leadership change.
The former head of Börse Stuttgart Alexander Heptner took over BitMEX at the end of 2020.
In April 2021, the company unveiled an ambitious development plan to transform into one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency derivatives exchanges.
In May 2022, BitMEX launched a platform for spot trading of cryptocurrencies. In July, amid the bear market, the companydelayed the plannedlisting of a utility token.
Earlier, a BitMEX-linked entitypulled out of the planned acquisition of Bankhaus von der Heydt due to possible opposition from BaFin, according to reports. The purchase agreementwas signed in January 2022.
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