Wife Allegedly Steals £180 Million in Bitcoin from Husband During Divorce
Imagine discovering that your life savings had disappeared overnight… and suspecting your own spouse was responsible.
That’s the extraordinary claim at the centre of a recent High Court case in England.
The claimant alleges that, as their marriage was breaking down, his estranged wife secretly obtained the 24-word recovery phrase for his Bitcoin wallet. According to court documents, she allegedly recorded him without his knowledge to capture the phrase before transferring more than 2,300 Bitcoin, worth between £160 million and £180 million, into dozens of separate wallet addresses.
The legal battle isn’t just about who owns the Bitcoin. It is also helping shape how English law deals with digital assets.
One surprising aspect of the judgment is that the court ruled the traditional legal claim of conversion (essentially the civil equivalent of wrongful interference with someone else’s property) does not currently apply to Bitcoin because, under existing English law, it only covers tangible property. Instead, the claimant must rely on other legal remedies, including proprietary claims and asset tracing.
The case is another reminder that cryptocurrency owners face risks beyond hackers and scammers. Sometimes, the greatest threat may come from someone who already knows where you keep your recovery phrase.
For anyone holding digital assets, keeping your seed phrase private and secure remains one of the most important steps you can take.