- A UK court has ruled that USDT is considered property under English law, attracting legal protections
- The decision follows the UK government’s push to regulate crypto ownership and digital assets
- Victims of crypto fraud now have stronger legal recourse to track and recover stolen assets
USDT attracts property rights as it can be traced and can constitute a trust property in the same way as other assets, a judge in England has declared.
USDT Attracts Property Rights, Declares Judge in England
The High Court of Justice for England and Wales stated that Tether’s USDT stablecoin, the largest by market capitalization, can be considered property, in a ruling issued one day after the UK government began legislating on the status of cryptocurrencies.
“USDT attracts property rights under English law,” said Richard Farnhill, an additional judge of the High Court, in documents filed on Thursday. “It can be traced and can constitute trust property in the same way as other property.“
The Case of Fabrizio D’Aloia
The case was brought forward by Fabrizio D’Aloia, who claimed to have been the victim of a cryptocurrency scam, and primarily involves the crypto exchange Bitkub, named as one of seven defendants, including two unidentified individuals, and Binance, the largest crypto exchange by trading volume.
The case against Binance has been resolved, according to the filing. D’Aloia claimed that he was tricked into handing over cryptocurrency in the form of USDT and Circle’s USDC for a total of about £2.5 million ($3.3 million) by an unidentified defendant.
The alleged fraudster moved the funds through various blockchain wallets before they were withdrawn by the other unidentified defendant as fiat currency through Gate and Bitkub.
Government Legislation on Crypto as Property
On Wednesday, the government presented a bill that paves the way for treating crypto as property. The bill, drafted by the independent statutory body Law Commission, had its first reading in Parliament.
Farnhill’s ruling echoes the bill’s assertion that crypto is neither a “thing in possession,” which includes items like money and cars, nor a “thing in action,” such as debts and shares, but is still considered property.
Court Ruling and Future Implications
However, the judge ruled in favor of Bitkub, stating that D’Aloia had no claim against the company because “it received nothing from him.” According to the court document, D’Aloia’s claim against the crypto trading platform Aux Cayes Fintech was “dismissed.”
In summary, the British court’s decision marks an important step toward recognizing cryptocurrencies as legal property. This opens new opportunities for USDT and other cryptocurrency holders in the UK, providing them with greater protections against fraud and abuse.
However, much remains to be defined in terms of regulation, but this is certainly a positive signal for the future of crypto.
