Bithumb has taken legal action to recover the last missing funds from a major payout mistake that happened earlier this year.
Back in February, the exchange accidentally sent out a huge amount of Bitcoin during a promotion due to a system glitch. Instead of giving small rewards, it mistakenly distributed a massive sum.
Bithumb managed to recover about 99.7% of the funds almost immediately. But a small portion—around 7 BTC—still hasn’t been returned.
Now, the exchange is going after users who kept the funds. It has filed for provisional seizures, which means it can freeze user assets before starting a full lawsuit if they refuse to return the money.
Some users reportedly argue that the mistake wasn’t their fault, so they shouldn’t have to give the funds back. But under South Korean law, this kind of situation is usually treated as “unjust enrichment,” meaning the money legally belongs to the original owner and must be returned.
Because of this incident, regulators have stepped in. The Financial Services Commission has told crypto exchanges to tighten their systems and improve monitoring, especially for large transactions.
In simple terms, Bithumb fixed most of the damage quickly—but now it’s dealing with the last few users who won’t return funds, and it’s ready to take the fight to court.
