The Recognized by the Madras High Court Cryptocurrency as property capable of being held in trust, providing relief to a Wazirx user whose XRP funds were frozen following the 2024 exchange hack.
The decision could set a precedent for how Indian courts handle user claims against exchanges operating under foreign jurisdictions.
Justice N. Anand Venkatesh’s October 25 Order directed Zanmai Labs, the Indian operator of Wazirx, to provide a bank guarantee worth about 9.56 lakh (around $11,500), which is equivalent to frozen 3,532 XRP, pending arbitration.
“The cryptocurrency was held by him in India through the Wazirx platform,” the court said. “Cryptocurrency is an asset … capable of being enjoyed and owned, and capable of being held in trust.”
The decision comes after Rhutikumari, a long-time user of Wazirx, challenged the exchange’s right to reallocate his XRP holdings under a “socialized loss scheme” tied to its Singapore-based parent Zettai Pte Ltd’s Restructuring.
Wazirx, once India’s largest crypto exchange, stopped withdrawing in July 2024 after a $230 million hack targeting wallets managed by Singapore Custodian Liminal. The company then pursued a court restructuring in Singapore, where users would receive “recovery tokens” and partial payments once operations resumed.
That plan – approved by the Singapore High Court earlier this month – has since become the cornerstone of Wazirx’s restructuring. But the Madras ruling signals that Indian users can still seek domestic legal protection even if the company’s legal seat resides abroad.
For the thousands of Indian users still waiting for their tokens from the 2024 Wazirx Hack, the Madras decision marks the first tangible win.
This does not force Wazirx to return the funds, but it recognizes a principle that may define future cases: crypto belongs to the user, not the exchange.
