$7.4 million of Craig Wright’s assets have been frozen following the Bitcoin creator’s trial

A judge issued the order Thursday amid concerns that computer scientist Craig Wright may try to avoid a fine after a UK court ruled he was not the inventor of Bitcoin.

According to a court document shared by the Bitcoin Legal Defense Fund, a “global freezing order” issued by Judge James Mellor is aimed at securing approximately 6 million GBP, or $7.4 million, of Wright's assets.

The legal hold is the latest step in a recent legal dispute between COPA, a group of Bitcoin developers backed by Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, and Craig Wright, which began in February. Earlier this month, Mellor Wright determined that he was neither the man behind the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto nor the author of the Bitcoin white paper.

According to court documents, the freeze is intended to cover COPA's legal fees and prevent Wright from “dispersing” the property. In January, before the trial began, Wright proposed an out-of-court settlement with COPA to avoid mounting legal fees, but COPA rejected the proposal.

The move was expedited, Mellor noted, after Wright transferred his stake in the company's RCJBR Holdings to Singapore-based DeMorgan PTE on March 18.

“Understandably, that raised concerns on COPA's part that Dr. Wright was taking steps to avoid the costs he lost at trial,” Mellor said, noting that COPA (and its affiliated Bitcoin developers) were the winning party.

COPA “has a very strong claim that it will be awarded a very substantial sum,” the judge wrote, but acknowledged that it was improper for COPA to grant Wright a final payment order without Wright having an opportunity to respond.

“In my judgment, this is a clear case for an ice order that extends worldwide,” Mellor said.

Mellor reiterated the court's request that Wright provide a clear accounting of all assets as soon as possible.

COPA has been in a legal battle with Wright since 2021, who has repeatedly claimed to be the inventor of Bitcoin.

“Our case is that Dr. Wright's claim to be Satoshi Nakamoto is a blatant lie, an elaborate false narrative supported by industry-standard disinformation,” attorneys representing COPA said in an email to Decrypt.

Edited by Ryan Ozawa.