UK High Court accepts case of $172 million bitcoin theft

A UK High Court judge has approved a theft lawsuit involving 2,323 bitcoin (approximately $172 million) to proceed to trial. The plaintiff, Ping Fai Yuen, accuses his estranged wife of obtaining the hardware wallet recovery phrase via a home surveillance camera and transferring the bitcoin without permission in 2023. Although the judge dismissed his main claim regarding "conversion," stating that the law typically only applies to physical property, the case will continue under other legal claims, which may potentially lead to the recovery of the bitcoin.