In 2011, our client bought 61 Bitcoin through a UK exchange called Intersango. It cost around £2.94 per Bitcoin at the time. Within a few years, the exchange had collapsed and the Bitcoin was gone, seemingly for good. In January 2026, he came to CEL Solicitors. Four months later, every single coin – now worth £3,331,618 – has been returned.
What Was Intersango?
Intersango was the UK’s first Bitcoin exchange. It launched in early 2011 under the name Britcoin (not to be confused with the Bank of England’s proposed digital currency, which came much later) before being formally incorporated as Intersango Ltd – a UK private limited company – in June 2011.
For a brief period, it was the second-largest Bitcoin exchange in the world. It allowed users to buy and sell Bitcoin in British pounds, US dollars, euros, and Polish Zloty, and it attracted thousands of UK-based users who were among the first wave of everyday people to dabble in cryptocurrency.
At the time, Bitcoin was far from the household name it is today. In 2011, a single coin was worth between £0.16 and £16. Most users deposited relatively small amounts, treating it as an experiment more than an investment.
Then, in late 2012, Intersango began winding down. GBP and USD trading stopped. By early 2014, the website had gone dark entirely. Users who tried to withdraw their funds received no response.
Intersango Ltd was eventually dissolved by Companies House in March 2016 – but the Bitcoin it held on to on behalf of its users was never returned.
Why This Is Still Relevant Today
When Intersango collapsed, Bitcoin was worth a fraction of what it is now. Many users wrote off their losses and moved on. It barely felt worth the trouble at the time.
More than 5,500 Bitcoin has been traced and is believed to belong to former Intersango users. Bitcoin was worth around £16 per coin in 2011, when most Intersango users were active on the platform. At the time of writing, it is worth approximately £48,000 per coin. At its peak in 2025, it briefly reached £93,614. Someone who deposited what felt like a modest amount over a decade ago may now be sitting on a claim worth tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, or even millions of pounds, without knowing it.
The court proceedings in California have created a formal route through which former users can assert their claim to those assets. The door, which many assumed was permanently closed, is open again.
How CEL Recovered £3 Million (So Far)
In January 2026, a former Intersango user came to CEL Solicitors. He had purchased Bitcoin through the exchange back in 2011, when each coin was worth up to £2.94. The exchange collapsed. His Bitcoin disappeared. For over a decade, he assumed it was gone.
On the 20th January 2026, he instructed us, and on the 28th May 2026, the case was settled.
Every single Bitcoin was returned in full.
The entire process took four months. In cases of this nature, where assets have been held for over a decade and recovery requires navigating complex, cross-border proceedings and specialist tracing courtesy of our sister company, The Crypto Tracing Experts, four months is exceptionally fast. These cases can – and often do – take years.
The whole thing was handled on a no-win, no-fee basis. Our client paid nothing to begin the process. The Bitcoin he purchased for a modest sum in 2011 is now worth £3,331,618.
Ryan Sweetnam, Director of Financial Litigation at CEL Solicitors, commented:
“When it comes to recovering crypto assets, the path to repatriation is never straightforward. In the case of Intersango, gathering vital documents, and the verification of legitimate claims, was challenging after so many years. A significant hurdle in this case was obtaining bank records from almost 15 years ago to evidence the proof of purchase, but it is possible.”
Sweetnam added:
“Hundreds of millions of pounds are still sitting in a wallet capable of being returned. We urge anyone who lost Bitcoin because of the closing of Britcoin or Intersango to please get in touch. Recovery is possible and, as in the case of our client, it could be life-changing.”
Could You Have a Claim?
If you used Britcoin or Intersango between 2011 and 2014 and were unable to withdraw your funds before the exchange closed, you may have a valid claim.
You do not need extensive documentation to get started. The most useful things you can provide are any of the following:
- The email address you used to register with Intersango. This is the single most valuable piece of information and is often all we need to get started.
- An email from Intersango. If you received any correspondence from the exchange, searching your inbox – including old or archived email accounts – is well worth doing.
- A bank statement showing a payment to Intersango. If you no longer have access to the email address you used, a bank statement confirming a transaction to the exchange can serve as an alternative starting point.
Why No-Win, No-Fee Matters Here
Pursuing a claim for assets lost over a decade ago, from a dissolved company, in connection with ongoing overseas litigation, is, to put it plainly, the kind of thing most people would assume they couldn’t afford to pursue.
That is exactly why we offer our crypto recovery work on a no-win, no-fee basis. You are not alone in this, and you should not have to take on financial risk just to find out whether you have a case.
If we don’t win, you don’t pay. It really is that straightforward.
Get in Touch
If you think you may have had an account with Intersango or Britcoin, contact our crypto fraud and recovery team today for a free, no-obligation conversation.
