Bithumb wins lawsuits over $40B Bitcoin crediting error
Bitcoin (BTC)
Editor:
Eugene Serbin
tradersunion.com reports that South Korean exchange Bithumb has won two lawsuits against users who sold Bitcoin mistakenly credited to their accounts. The Seoul Central District Court ruled in favor of Bithumb on August 26 and 27 regarding the February error that credited 620,000 BTC to 249 customers instead of cash rewards. The exchange sought the return of 194 million won ($140,000) in one case and 5 million won ($3,600) in the second.
Both cases proceeded through service by public notice because court documents could not be delivered to the defendants through ordinary methods. The incident occurred on February 6 during a promotional campaign where an employee mistakenly selected Bitcoin instead of Korean won as the payment unit. Customers received 620,000 BTC worth more than $40 billion instead of the intended 620,000 won.
Bithumb recovered 618,212 BTC, or 99.7% of the mistakenly credited amount, before some users sold a combined 1,788 BTC. In March, the exchange filed four unjust enrichment lawsuits against customers who sold the assets and did not return the proceeds. The Financial Supervisory Service launched an investigation and sent its findings in early August, initiating a procedure that could lead to sanctions. Meanwhile, Bithumb is preparing for an IPO planned for 2028, with Kiwoom Securities considering acquiring a stake.
How the market reacted
Whalio's own Binance spot order flow for BTC, measured when this story was written up on 27 August 2026. Not the outlet's figures.
BTC is trading at $79,023.75 with a 24-hour buy ratio of 49.9%, indicating near-even distribution between buyers and sellers. Short-term pressure shows a slight imbalance against buyers, with the 1-hour buy ratio at 41.3% and the 4-hour ratio at 46.3%. Volume delta confirms this weakness, showing net selling of $13.3 million in the last hour and $26.9 million over four hours. Over the full day, net selling totals $903,088, with cumulative volume delta at -$89.6 million. This suggests that while buying interest remains steady, short-term sellers are currently dominating the flow. The data indicates fading buying pressure in the immediate term compared to the broader 24-hour period.
The latest daily buy ratio of 46.7% sits at the 18th percentile of the last 322 days, against a median of 49.2% - weaker buying than most days.
Twenty-four hours later
What BTC did over the 24 hours after the story broke. The market moves for its own reasons; this is what happened, not what the story caused.
Was that an ordinary day?
The same Binance spot measurements for BTC, averaged over the days leading up to the story.
Over the preceding week, BTC saw a 7-day average buy ratio of 51.6%, with six out of seven days showing net buying. Today's 24-hour buy ratio of 49.9% is 1.7 points lower than the weekly average, signaling a shift toward neutrality. Volume for the day was 0.54 times the weekly average, indicating significantly reduced activity compared to the previous week. Despite lower volume, the price rose 14.0% over eight days, supported by a total volume delta of +$445.7 million. This represents a departure from the usual high-volume trading days seen earlier in the week.