DUBAI: Amid all the crypto craze and crash, one company might end up paying a heavy price for an error it made last year.
Crypto.com, the firm that hired Matt Damon for its 2021 Super Bowl ad, intended to issue a $100 refund to an Australian woman, Thevamanogari Manivel, in May last year — but ended up sending $10 million by mistake.
After realizing its error seven months later, Crypto.com resorted to legal action in a bid to recover the money.
Even Victorian Supreme Court Judge James Elliott was surprised, writing in a court ruling: “Extraordinarily, the plaintiffs allegedly did not realize this significant error until some seven months later, in late December 2021.”
The company managed to have Manivel’s accounts frozen, but she had already split the money with six other people, including her sister for whom she bought a $1 million mansion in Melbourne, according to media reports.
Still, Crypto.com might be able to get at least some of its money back.
Last week, the company won a court ruling ordering the defendants to repay all of the money, cover legal expenses that were incurred, and pay interest of 10 percent, amounting to just over $20,000.
The court also ordered that the Melbourne property be sold and the proceeds used to reimburse Crypto.com.
Attempts to contact Manivel and her solicitors have been in vain, according to reports.
Following the latest court ruling, it remains to be seen if Manivel and her sister will be able to hand over the money.
