Former Saitama CEO Manpreet Kohli has lost his UK court challenge against extradition to the United States, moving him closer to a federal trial over alleged wire fraud and market manipulatio
Former Saitama CEO Manpreet Kohli has lost his UK court challenge against extradition to the United States, moving him closer to a federal trial over alleged wire fraud and market manipulation involving the once multibillion-dollar Ethereum token.
Judge Samuel Goozee rejected Kohli’s extradition challenge on August 19 and sent the case to British ministers to decide whether to approve the U.S. request. Kohli can still appeal and remains free on £200,000 bail.
The 45-year-old former executive was arrested in London in October 2024 after U.S. prosecutors charged him alongside other Saitama figures in a wider investigation into alleged crypto pump-and-dump and wash-trading schemes.
Saitama reached a market value of about $7.5 billion at its peak. Kohli and other executives allegedly told investors they were holding and purchasing SAITAMA while secretly selling their own tokens into the market.
The federal charges accuse Kohli of wire fraud, market manipulation and conspiracy to commit wire fraud, market manipulation and operate an unlicensed money transmitting business. Prosecutors allege Kohli personally generated roughly $20 million from Saitama token sales.
Saitama leadership allegedly coordinated small purchases across multiple wallets to create the appearance of broader demand before paying market makers including ZM Quant and Gotbit to generate artificial trading volume. The token was traded on exchanges including BitMart, LBank and XT.com.
Several defendants tied to Saitama have already pleaded guilty to offenses connected with the alleged scheme. Kohli has not been convicted and is fighting the U.S. charges.
The Saitama case formed part of Operation Token Mirrors, the unusual FBI investigation that created an Ethereum token called NexFundAI to expose market makers willing to manipulate trading volume.
The FBI-created token was offered to firms including ZM Quant, CLS Global and MyTrade, with undercover investigators collecting evidence of alleged wash-trading services. U.S. authorities initially charged 18 individuals and entities and seized more than $25 million in cryptocurrency.
The operation continued into 2026, when another 10 foreign nationals were charged over alleged manipulation involving Gotbit, Vortex, Antier and Contrarian.
CLS Global later received a $428,000 penalty after admitting to wash trading NexFundAI during the undercover operation.
Kohli separately tried to have the U.S. indictment dismissed, arguing that SAITAMA could not legally qualify as a security under U.S. law. A federal judge in Boston rejected that challenge earlier in August, leaving the criminal case intact.
His UK challenge focused partly on whether U.S. custody arrangements could adequately manage his health and safety. Judge Goozee found the safeguards available during transport and imprisonment sufficient to allow the extradition process to continue.
The case now sits with British ministers for an extradition decision. Kohli remains on £200,000 bail and retains the right to appeal the August 19 ruling.
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