Accounts manager agrees to pay €480,000 to crypto technology firm

A technology company has settled High Court proceedings against an accounts manager who it claims misappropriated more than €480,000 worth of cryptocurrency payments from the firm.

Light Technology Limited, which trades under the name of Transak, claimed before the court last August that Niall Ryan, from Glanmahon Road, Donnycarney, Dublin, had diverted cryptocurrency payments due to the company from its customers into eight online or digital wallets allegedly controlled by him.

The defendant, it was claimed, had been employed by an Irish company that subcontracted him to Light Technology to work from Ireland as an accounts manager.

The company had previously obtained various orders against Mr Ryan.

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When the matter returned before Ms Justice Siobhán Stack on Thursday, Una Tighe SC, for Light Technology, said the matter had been resolved.

Sum recovery

As part of the settlement, the court could make various orders including that the plaintiff would recover a sum of approximately €480,000 from Mr Ryan, counsel said.

Additionally, Mr Ryan consented to not registering or acquiring any domain or business name containing either Transak or Light Technology Ltd or any variation which is confusingly similar to those business names.

He further agreed to refrain from representing to any person with any association with or any authority to act on behalf of Light Technology.

Last August, Light Technology, represented by Ms Tighe, instructed by Frank Flanagan of Mason Hayes and Curran, secured an interim injunction preventing Mr Ryan from dissipating or moving any cryptocurrency held in the wallets.

He was ordered not to reduce, dissipate or reduce his assets below a value of $478,000 or €480,000.

The order remained in place until Thursday.

Wallet diversion

The court previously heard that the defendant had dealt with invoicing and commission payments to the plaintiff’s customers and partners.

The plaintiff, a UK-regulated company with a registered address in London, provides an app-based service that allows its users to buy and sell cryptocurrency through its customer’s websites or apps.

The plaintiff claims that it discovered that since last March several payments of cryptocurrency due to it were diverted to wallets that it alleges are controlled by Mr Ryan.

It is claimed that the payments were made on foot of invoices sent by Mr Ryan where, it is alleged, he changed the wallet addresses on the invoices from those belonging to the company to wallets controlled by him.

It is claimed the alleged fraud was discovered last August when the actual revenue the company expected to receive did not match expected revenue on accounts managed by Mr Ryan.

The court also heard that, in communications with the plaintiff, Mr Ryan had made admissions regarding the allegedly missing monies and said that he had alcohol and gambling issues.

The company claimed that Mr Ryan admitted doing wrong, regretted his actions and wished to fix the situation.

However, he had not fulfilled promises made to the company to return the funds, it was claimed.