Bloomberry Resorts Cleared in US Court, Bangladesh Bank Complaint Dismissed

The company, which operates Manila’s Solaire Resort Entertainment City, was sued by Bangladesh Bank over data breaches, with the defendant now getting a second favorable decision by the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court.

Second Court Sides with Bloomberry Resorts

This decision aligns with a previous ruling by the Supreme Court to strike down the complaint lodged against the defendant by Bangladesh Bank. Based on details revealed by the Philippine Stock Exchange filing, the Appellate Division reached a decision on May 20 and supported the previous ruling of the Supreme Court from April 2022.

Bloomberry Resorts Corp, and its subsidiary Bloomberry Resorts and Hotels, Inc, along with Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation, and Eastern Hawaii Leisure Company, Ltd have all been accused of serious crimes, including conspiracy to commit, fraud, aiding and abetting, conspiracy to commit fraud, conversion, theft, misappropriation, and a litany of other charges.

The case in point has to do with the attack on Bangladesh Bank by a North Korean cohort of hackers in 2016 who managed to syphon off a total of $1 billion from the bank’s accounts. The hackers attacked the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which responded rapidly, blocking the majority of the transfers, but letting $101 million slip through.

Not Likely to Recover Any More Funds

The bank was able to claw back $20 million of these funds, but the remaining $81 million remained elusive. To this end, the plaintiff began looking at how the remainder of the money was used, with the majority of the funds channelled through various casinos and gambling properties and used to buy gaming chips and play in junket rooms. The hackers were successful in transferring the money because the criminals specifically launched their attack during the long weekend.

Since the accident took place, Bangladesh Bank has been looking to recover the missing funds, essentially accusing the defendants of not acting in good conscience when it came to examining the source of funds and flagging the matter with authorities in a timely fashion. With the latest rulings, however, it’s unlikely for Bangladesh Bank to recoup any further of the missing funds.