Bitmain, one of the largest makers of Bitcoin mining equipment, has been dragged to court for an alleged breach of hosting agreement. Old Const, the plaintiff, alleges that Bitmain Technologies Georgia Limited, a US affiliate of the company, terminated their hosting contract without an appropriate reason.
Old Const claims that Bitmain fabricated breaches of their agreement to terminate the partnership. According to the details of the lawsuit, Old Const wrote that Bitmain “fabricated purported breaches to terminate the agreement immediately.” The notice of termination, issued on August 22, is described by Old Const as a material and anticipatory breach of the parties’ contracts.
Old Const asks the court for an injunction against Bitmain
Old Const claimed that it signed a Hosting Services Agreement (HSA) with Bitmain in November 2024 to provide data center hosting for Bitmain’s HASH Super Computing Servers. The lawsuit also mentioned additional agreements, including a Collaboration Agreement, a Sales Agreement, and an OnRack Sales & Purchase Agreement.
Most of the agreements included clauses requiring disputes to be resolved in Texas courts or through arbitration in Houston. Old Const alleges that Bitmain went beyond simply ending the partnership and actually threatened to seek a court order, known as a “writ of replevin,” to seize its mining equipment. In its complaint, Bitmain wants to obtain the order from a court outside of Texas.
Since the HSA contract clearly requires that all legal disputes be handled in Texas, Old Const states that this move would violate the terms of their contract. “Despite the mandatory forum selection provisions, Bitmain has threatened to seek a writ of replevin or possession from a court outside of Texas, in violation of the HSA and the other agreements’ exclusive forum selection clauses,” it said in its filing.
Old Const is also urging the court to issue a temporary restraining order and an injunction in order to stop Bitmain from bypassing the agreement dispute process. This would halt any plan that Bitmain has to obtain a seizure order outside Texas. The hosting provider stresses that without an injunction, Bitmain could attempt to take away the essential mining equipment that Old Const depends on to continue operating.
Old Const wants to handle the legal process through the valid channels
In addition, Old Const is also asking the court to confirm that the parts of the contract about handling disputes in Texas and through arbitration are valid. It wants the court to force Bitmain into arbitration for issues that don’t need urgent court orders. On top of that, Old Const is seeking money to cover its losses, plus extra costs caused by Bitmain’s actions, and it wants Bitmain to pay its legal fees.
This is not the first time Bitmain has had a dispute with a hosting provider. Last year, Bitmain took JWKJ Technologies to court. It said the hosting provider broke their contract by failing to keep miners running 95% of the time. Bitmain also accused JWKJ of redirecting power for its own profit. When Bitmain tried to recover its equipment, JWKJ declined.
The mining rigs maker accused JWKJ of illegally holding $15 million worth of mining equipment. Bitmain was founded by Chinese-born Singaporean billionaire Jihan Wu. In June, Cryptopolitan reported that Bitmain, along with other mining companies Canaan and MicroBT, is planning to build their mining rigs in the US to avoid Trump’s reciprocal tariffs. Last month, Bitmain sold 16,290 ASIC miners to the American Bitcoin Corp. for a staggering $314 million.
