Key Takeaways:
- A Canadian court issued a Mareva Injunction against Nunchuk.
- It is among other intermediaries and individuals, ordering the company to disclose user information and freeze any assets related to the Freedom Convoy 2022 protests.
- The company tweeted that it had rejected the court’s order because it was unable to comply with it because the only user data it stores is email addresses.
- This is the first time the injunction has been used against cryptocurrency.
A Canadian court issued a Mareva Injunction against Nunchuk. Among other intermediaries and individuals, it is ordering the company to disclose user information and freeze any assets related to the Freedom Convoy 2022 protests. This is the first time the injunction has been issued against cryptocurrency.
On February 19th, the company tweeted that it had rejected the court’s order because it could not comply with it. After all, the only user data it stores is email addresses. In an email to the court, Nunchuk explained that it was a software provider for its users, not a financial intermediary, and thus had no control over their assets.
The email stated, “We do not collect any user identification information beyond email addresses. We also do not hold any keys. Therefore We cannot ‘freeze’ our users’ assets; We cannot ‘prevent’ them from being moved; We do not have knowledge of ‘the existence, nature, value and location’ of our users’ assets. This is by design. Please look up how self custody and private keys work. When the Canadian dollar becomes worthless, we will be here to serve you, too.”
Nunchuk again tweeted that it would prioritise a non-email login option on its roadmap. The Mareva Injunction had been sent to eight other digital asset platforms. These eight digital platforms include Canada-based Bitbuy and various fundraising platforms, financial institutions, and digital asset custodians. Justice Judge Calum MacLeod signed it.
Digital asset owners in self-custodial wallets hold their private keys and thus have exclusive access to their assets instead of having them in the custody of a financial third party. The wallets have received attention because they can be used to transfer cryptocurrency directly without an intermediary, potentially thwarting the federal government’s efforts to halt the flow of funds to convoy protests.
