Couple mistakenly given $10.5m from Crypto.com thought they had won contest, court hears

A Victorian woman accused of theft over a $10.5m mistaken cryptocurrency refund has been released on bail as she awaits trial, despite claims she allegedly tried to flee the country.

Thevamanogari Manivel and her partner, Jatinder Singh, appeared by video link from prison in Melbourne magistrates court on Tuesday when they were committed to stand trial on theft and other charges.

In May 2021, Crypto.com intended to refund Manivel $100 but she was erroneously transferred $10.47m. The company did not notice the mistake until an audit was conducted in December.

A worker in Bulgaria, who processed the refund, had entered the wrong numbers into an Excel spreadsheet, Michi Chan Fores, a Crypto.com compliance officer, told the court.

Singh allegedly thought he won the money after being sent a notification from the Crypto.com app about a competition. This was also what he told Manivel.

However, Fores claimed there was no such competition and said Crypto.com did not send push notifications to tell users about competition winnings.

The money was allegedly used to buy four houses while $4m was transferred to a Malaysian bank account. The rest paid for gifts, vehicles, art and furniture, the court heard.