A British judge has denied former Saitama CEO Manpreet Kohli’s attempt to resist extradition to the United States, where he faces serious charges related to alleged cryptocurrency market manipulation. The High Court’s decision clears the way for the case to proceed to the UK government, which will determine whether Kohli should be sent to the US for trial.
Extradition decision and legal arguments
Judge Samuel Goozee issued the ruling on August 19, rejecting Kohli’s arguments against extradition. Kohli had raised concerns about his mental health, arguing that US authorities would not be able to manage his suicide risk while in custody. However, Goozee concluded that sufficient safeguards exist within the US prison system and during the transfer process to mitigate these risks to an acceptable level.
Kohli remains free on £200,000 bail, approximately $272,400, as his extradition is still subject to appeal—a process which could prolong his stay in the UK. If Kohli chooses to contest the decision further, the legal proceedings could continue for several more months.
Earlier in August, a Boston federal judge rejected Kohli’s separate attempt to have the US indictment dismissed. In that proceeding, Kohli’s attorneys argued that the Saitama token could not legally be classified as a security under US law, but the court was not persuaded by the defense’s position.
ETH
SOL
BSC
ROBINHOOD
USDT
AAPLMarket manipulation allegations
US prosecutors have charged Kohli with wire fraud, market manipulation, conspiring with others, and running an unlicensed money-transmitting business. The case centers on Saitama, an Ethereum-based token that reached a peak reported market capitalization of $7.5 billion.
The Justice Department alleges that Kohli, along with 17 others, coordinated token purchases across multiple wallets to artificially boost Saitama’s trading activity. According to prosecutors, the group paid market-making firms such as ZM Quant and Gotbit to engage in wash trading across several exchanges.
Prosecutors accuse Kohli and the other executives of publicly denying that they were selling their holdings, while privately cashing out tokens for millions of dollars. They estimate Kohli personally gained roughly $20 million from these sales.
On October 9, 2024, just two days after Kohli’s arrest in London, the US Department of Justice unveiled charges as part of “Operation Token Mirrors,” a broader investigation into crypto fraud and artificially inflated trading volumes.
Industry responses and forfeitures
The prosecution claims that wash trading tactics were used to simulate legitimate market activity, misleading investors about demand for the Saitama token. In June 2025, Gotbit admitted to price and volume manipulation for clients including Saitama. As a result, the company was ordered to forfeit $23 million, and its founder, Aleksei Andriunin, received an eight-month prison sentence.
Attorneys for Kohli did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
While traditional markets rely on complex brokers, a significant transformation is underway as Wall Street adapts to Web3 technologies. Investors are now using solutions like 1stepSwap to hold shares of leading US companies, as well as gold and silver, directly in their crypto wallets. Platforms that tokenize real-world assets and automatically source the best available market prices in seconds are removing intermediaries from the system.
Kohli’s legal challenges come as global authorities ramp up enforcement against schemes that use sophisticated tactics to create the illusion of trading activity. The Saitama case underlines ongoing scrutiny of how digital assets are promoted, traded, and regulated worldwide.
