An Australian cryptocurrency exchange is currently in the midst of attempting to rectify a substantial financial error after mistakenly depositing approximately $653,000 (A$995,000) into user accounts instead of the intended $65,300 (A$99,500) due to what is being described as a significant "fat finger" mistake. According to ABC News, Rhino Trading, the company behind the OTCPro exchange, revealed these details in court documents.
The recipient of the erroneous transfer, identified as user Kow Seng Chai, has purportedly not responded to the exchange's email communication aimed at returning the funds following the realization of the error on February 4. Court documents further allege that Chai utilized a portion of the mistakenly transferred funds to purchase Tether, subsequently withdrawing significant sums from the exchange in increments of $100,000 (the maximum daily limit), totaling approximately $626,700 (AU$956,000) over the span of 10 days.
Despite attempts to contact Chai via a phone number associated with his account, the exchange claims that the caller denied being Chai, casting doubt on the situation. Notably, Chai failed to make an appearance in court proceedings. As a result, the Supreme Court of Victoria intervened, freezing Chai's assets on February 9 and issuing an injunction on February 21 to prevent him from departing the country.
Judge Michael Osborne, presiding over the case, cited concerns regarding the potential disposal of assets, highlighting discrepancies in bank statements. Consequently, he ordered the freezing of Chai's assets and imposed travel restrictions to ensure accountability. Rhino Trading claims to have incurred a loss of nearly $322,700, representing Chai’s remaining account balance after deducting the erroneously sent funds.
