Binance takes $65k Bitcoin fraud fight to Canada’s Supreme Court as 248,000 users put jurisdiction on trial

Canada’s Supreme Court has agreed to hear Binance’s appeal in a case that could decide whether crypto exchanges can use offshore structures to avoid Canadian freezing orders. The dispute centers on about $65,000 in bitcoin allegedly stolen from a Canadian victim by three Nigerian citizens and traced to accounts held by Seychelles-based Nest Services, part of Binance.

Investigators traced the bitcoin allegedly taken from the Canadian victim to three accounts held by Nest Services Ltd., a Seychelles-based company that forms part of the wider Binance platform.

The Ontario Superior Court granted some of the asset-freezing and preservation orders requested by the province’s Attorney-General in 2025. Binance entities challenged the application, arguing that Canadian courts did not have jurisdiction over the foreign-based company.

Canada’s highest court agreed last week to hear the appeal. No date has yet been scheduled for the hearing.

The dispute highlights one of the central difficulties facing authorities investigating crypto fraud: digital assets can move across borders rapidly, while the companies holding those assets may be incorporated and headquartered in jurisdictions outside Canada.

Jeffrey Simser, a lawyer and asset-forfeiture expert who previously served as director of civil forfeiture at Ontario’s Ministry of the Attorney-General, said the Supreme Court’s decision could establish an important precedent.

“We live in a world defined by nation states and borders. This case will test whether a business operating in Canada can assert their corporate structure and location to evade their Canadian legal obligations,” — Jeffrey Simser, lawyer and former director of civil forfeiture at Ontario’s Ministry of the Attorney-General.

Foreign exchanges complicate crypto fraud recovery

The case comes as Canadian authorities confront growing financial losses linked to fraud. Victims reported $351 million in losses to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre during the first six months of this year, although the actual total is believed to be considerably higher because many incidents are never reported.

The centre estimates that only between 5 per cent and 10 per cent of fraud cases are reported, meaning official figures may capture only a fraction of the financial damage suffered by Canadians.

For investigators pursuing crypto fraud, the challenge becomes more complicated when stolen cryptocurrency reaches an exchange headquartered abroad. A Canadian court order may be difficult to enforce against an entity that operates under another country’s laws.

In the Binance dispute, however, the Ontario court concluded that it had jurisdiction to issue some of the requested orders because Nest Services maintained enough customers, holdings and transactions in Canada to establish what the court described as a “virtual presence.”

At the time, Nest had approximately 248,114 Canadian customers holding about $35.8 million in their accounts, despite the company no longer seeking to conduct business in Canada.

That finding is now at the centre of the appeal. The Supreme Court will effectively have to consider how a company’s connections with Canada should be assessed when its corporate structure and formal headquarters are located elsewhere.

For victims of crypto fraud, the outcome could determine how quickly Canadian authorities can intervene when allegedly stolen digital assets are identified at an international exchange.

Ruling could affect victims of crypto fraud

Tanya Walker, a Toronto-based lawyer with experience handling fraud cases, said the appeal raises broader questions about the ability of Canadian courts to protect victims when cryptocurrency crosses international borders.

The case is not simply about whether authorities can ultimately recover stolen funds. It also concerns whether they can preserve those assets before they are transferred elsewhere, potentially making recovery considerably more difficult.

Walker said the Supreme Court’s ruling could therefore have significant consequences for people affected by crypto fraud.

“The ability to preserve assets before they are moved can materially affect the prospects of eventual recovery, although preservation itself does not guarantee that the funds will be returned,” — Tanya Walker, Toronto-based lawyer.

Her comments underscore the distinction between freezing cryptocurrency and actually returning it to a victim. Even when investigators succeed in preventing digital assets from being transferred, additional legal proceedings may be required before the funds can be recovered.

The issue is particularly significant because cryptocurrency can be transferred between wallets and exchanges across jurisdictions without the same geographic constraints associated with traditional financial assets.

Supreme Court decision could reshape crypto fraud enforcement

The Binance case places those technological realities against a legal system still largely organized around national borders. Its outcome could help establish how Canadian courts should approach foreign cryptocurrency platforms when their services have substantial connections to Canadian users.

For people affected by crypto fraud, the ability to secure assets quickly can be critical. Once cryptocurrency is transferred through multiple wallets or converted into other assets, tracing and recovering it can become substantially more difficult.

The Supreme Court’s decision could therefore influence how prosecutors, regulators and victims approach future cases involving international cryptocurrency exchanges.

Simser described the significance of the appeal in particularly strong terms, saying the ruling will be “immensely important.”

At the same time, the court’s eventual decision will need to balance the interests of fraud victims with questions surrounding corporate jurisdiction, international commerce and the legal responsibilities of cryptocurrency platforms operating across borders.

The case involving Binance and Nest Services is consequently being watched beyond the immediate allegations. It could establish a framework for future crypto fraud investigations in which Canadian victims lose digital assets that ultimately end up under the control of foreign-based companies.

As cryptocurrency becomes increasingly integrated into financial markets, the question before Canada’s highest court is whether national legal protections can effectively follow digital assets beyond the country’s physical borders. For victims of crypto fraud, that answer could have a direct bearing on whether stolen funds can be preserved before they disappear beyond reach.