Full Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA UNITED STATES, Plaintiff, v. Civil Action No. 1:25-cv-02085 (CJN) ALL VIRTUAL CURRENCY HELD IN THE BTC-E OPERATING WALLETS AS OF JULY 25, 2017, AND OTHER ASSETS FURTHER DESCRIBED HEREIN, Defendant, & ARON OPTHUN, et al., Claimants. ORDER Upon consideration of the entire record in this case, the Court resolves certain outstanding issues and motions as follows. Starting with notice, the government intends to conduct another round of direct notice by sending emails to approximately 300,000 email addresses associated with accounts that had a positive balance when the government seized BTC-e’s servers in 2017. ECF 384 at 3–6. Although certain claimants oppose the government’s plan, the Court declines to preclude this effort. Among other things, Supplemental Rule G(4) uses mandatory and capacious language when describing the government’s notice obligations. See Fed. R. Civ. P. Supp. R. G(4)(b)(i) (“The government must send notice of the action and a copy of the complaint to any person who reasonably appears to be a potential claimant on the facts known to the government before the end of the time for filing a claim under Rule G(5)(a)(ii)(B).” (emphases added)). And 1 the finality of any settlement or judgment in this case could be in jeopardy if the notice provided thus far is later determined to be insufficient. To minimize the risk of delay and prejudice that could result from the government’s proposed course of action, the Court will require the government to file monthly status reports about its progress. As for the timeliness of claims, the government has “withdraw[n] its opposition to pending motions for leave to file late claims (Dkts. 317, 321, 332, 361, 368) and has determined not to move to strike late claims that have already been filed in this case.” ECF 384 at 8–9. The Court therefore grants the motions of those claimants who sought leave to file late claims. See ECF 293; ECF 309; ECF 311; ECF 315; ECF 320; ECF 327; ECF 331; ECF 339; ECF 359; ECF 391. Because the Court allows Michael William Charles Haworth to file a late claim, it denies as moot his Motion for Leave to File Supplemental Declaration and Exhibits, ECF 322. Several other outstanding motions can also be resolved now. Given that this Order and the Court’s recent Minute Order setting initial discovery-related deadlines have set new expectations for how this case will proceed, see Min. Order of July 29, 2026, the Court denies discovery-related motions that were filed earlier in the case.1 See ECF 32; ECF 352; ECF 353; ECF 363; ECF 375. These denials are without prejudice to renewal, so the Parties may refile such requests, if appropriate, as discovery progresses. As for the motions for leave to file certain materials under seal, the Court grants those motions for good cause shown and a lack of opposition. See ECF 143; ECF 145; ECF 182; ECF 187; ECF 210; ECF 335. The Court also denies Olga Solodina’s Motion for Return of Property, ECF 313, because she fails to cite any legal basis for her motion, and the Court denies as moot Kevin Reilly’s Motion to Condition a Further Stay on Commencement of 1 That the claimants filed these motions before conferring with the government, as required by Local Civil Rule 7(m) and the Standing Order, ECF 4 at 1, also supports denial. 2 Good-Faith Settlement Discussions, ECF 355, and Sang Rai Kang’s Motion for Joinder, ECF 360. Finally, the Court grants Nobuaki Kobayashi’s Motion for Leave to File Supplemental Response, ECF 390, insofar as it adds relevant information to the record. The Court will require the government to clarify its position on the remaining motions before taking action on them. The motions for which the Court seeks clarification are Sang Rai Kang’s Motion for Jury Trial, ECF 163; Remco Hereijgers’s Motion for Leave to File Answer Out of Time, ECF 300; and the government’s own Motion to Strike the Claim of Sergey Mayzus, ECF 369. The government shall submit a Status Report (separate from the ones about notice) that states its current position on these motions. Accordingly, it is hereby ORDERED that the government shall file a Status Report on or before September 15, 2026, and every 30 days thereafter, about the status of the additional round of notice until it is completed; and it is further ORDERED that Dominik Buechsel’s, Simon Haigh’s, Martin Spargo’s, Michael William Charles Haworth’s, Louis Papaloizou’s, Charles Edward Small’s, Paul Resch’s, Irwin Bin Ahmad’s, and Timothy Renzetti’s Motions for Leave to File Late Claims, ECF 293; ECF 309; ECF 311; ECF 315; ECF 320; ECF 327; ECF 331; ECF 339; ECF 359; ECF 391, are GRANTED; and it is further ORDERED that Michael William Charles Haworth’s Motion for Leave to File Supplemental Declaration and Exhibits, ECF 322, is DENIED as moot; and it is further ORDERED that Sang Rai Kang’s Motion to Compel First Set of Interrogatories, ECF 32; Kevin Reilly’s Motions for Disclosure and Limited Discovery, ECF 352; ECF 353; ECF 375; and 3 Paige Hopkins’s Motion to Produce Account Records, ECF 363, are DENIED without prejudice to renewal; and it is further ORDERED that Jonas Paasch’s, Eric Maxey’s, Travis Oslen’s, Hae Young Kwon’s, Jason Little’s, Matthew Williams’s, and Charles Edward Small’s Motions for Leave to File Documents Under Seal, ECF 143; ECF 145; ECF 182; ECF 187; ECF 210; ECF 335, are GRANTED; and it is further ORDERED that the Clerk of Court shall seal Hae Young Kwon’s Verified Claim, ECF 155, and Hae Young Kwon shall file a redacted version of the Verified Claim on the public docket; and it is further ORDERED that Olga Solodina’s Motion for Return of Property, ECF 313, is DENIED; and it is further ORDERED that Kevin Reilly’s Motion to Condition a Further Stay on Commencement of Good-Faith Settlement Discussions, ECF 355, and Sang Rai Kang’s Motion for Joinder, ECF 360, are DENIED as moot; and it is further ORDERED that Nobuaki Kobayashi’s Motion for Leave to File Supplemental Response, ECF 390, is GRANTED; and it is further ORDERED that the government shall file a Status Report on or before August 28, 2026, that clarifies its position regarding Sang Rai Kang’s Motion for Jury Trial, ECF 163; Remco Hereijgers’s Motion for Leave to File Answer Out of Time, ECF 300; and its own Motion to Strike the Claim of Sergey Mayzus, ECF 369. DATE: August 13, 2026 CARL J. NICHOLS United States District Judge 4