Citadel abandoned its U.S. trade secrets lawsuit against crypto market maker Portofino Technologies, saying it no longer made financial sense to pursue another court victory while struggling to collect a nearly 6 million-pound ($8 million) judgment it already won.
In a filing made Wednesday in the U.S., Miami-based Citadel jointly agreed with Portofino to dismiss the New York trade secrets case. Also on Wednesday, Citadel asked England's High Court to declare Portofino founder Leonard Lancia bankrupt over the unpaid arbitration award. The moves underscore that the dispute has shifted from proving liability to collecting money.
Under the U.S. stipulation, each side will bear its own legal fees and costs, and Citadel also dismissed claims against unnamed Doe defendants.
Portofino Technologies is a Swiss crypto-native financial technology firm that provides institutional trading infrastructure for digital asset markets. Founded in 2021 by former Citadel Securities executives, the company specializes in market making, over-the-counter (OTC) trading and treasury management services for exchanges, token issuers, institutional investors and Web3 projects.
The dismissal ends nearly three years of litigation without any ruling on Citadel's trade secret allegations.
Citadel told the New York court the decision to stop pursuing the case had nothing to do with the merits of its claims. Instead, it said it had already prevailed in a separate London arbitration against Portofino's founders on employment-related claims including breach of contract, unlawful means conspiracy and deceit, winning damages and legal costs that the High Court later recognized and made enforceable.
Despite that victory, Citadel said it has been unable to collect the award, leading to the bankruptcy petition against Lancia.
In the filing, Citadel says Lancia owes 5.98 million pounds of the 2025 award by the London Court of International Arbitration as well as interest and costs.
The petition says the awards were recognized by England's High Court in February, a statutory demand served in April went unsatisfied, and Lancia's attempt to set aside that demand was dismissed in May.
Citadel estimates it holds security worth only about 21,886 pounds against the debt, mostly small bank accounts and minority interests in French companies.
In the letter accompanying the U.S. dismissal, Citadel also noted that Lancia is subject to a worldwide freezing order and faces bankruptcy proceedings, adding that evidence presented at a June 26 High Court hearing failed to persuade the court that his ownership stake in Portofino held significant value.