Ethereum Traders File Class Action Lawsuit Over Kraken Flash Crash

A class-action lawsuit has been filed against cryptocurrency exchange startup Kraken over issues stemming from its management of a May flash crash.

Less than two months later, five customers of the exchange are alleging negligence, breach of contract and unjust enrichment, arguing that Kraken should have suspended trading amidst a denial-of-service (DDoS) attack that impacted its operations.

Newly filed court documents name five plaintiffs, including one in the US, two in Israel and two others based in the UK, while Payward Inc, which does business as Kraken, is named as the sole defendant. Between the five customers, a total of 3,414.078 ETH – an amount worth roughly $329,000 at a price of $96.32 – was liquidated.

That amount is equal to about $911,000 at press time.

Social media reports at the time attest to a plunge in the price of ether, the cryptocurrency of the ethereum network, on the exchange's order books, with market data from CryptoCoinCharts.info showcasing how prices touched a low of $26, resulting in a wave of liquidations.

In the aftermath, some customers complained that their positions had been unfairly sold, with others going as far as to allege manipulation. The following day, Kraken released a statement on the incident, remarking that an internal investigation "did not find any evidence of a coordinated attack or market manipulation" and that its internal systems had operated normally.