Foreign-seated arbitration can still attract interim protection for crypto assets treated as property pending arbitration.

In a foreign-seated arbitration, Indian courts may grant interim relief under Section 9 where preservation of assets in India is required. The Madras HC treated the applicant's crypto holdings as digital assets capable of interim protection and held that cryptocurrency can constitute property capable of beneficial possession and trust-based safeguarding against dissipation. At the interim stage, the court declined to let an alleged cyber-attack affecting other tokens defeat protection of the separate XRP holdings. Broader issues, including the effect of the Singapore scheme of arrangement, were left for arbitration, while protective relief was granted to secure the disputed crypto assets pending the reference.

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Issues: Whether an application under Section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 was maintainable despite the foreign seat of arbitration and whether the applicant was entitled to interim protection in respect of her crypto assets.

Analysis: The jurisdictional objection was rejected by applying the principle that, in a foreign-seated arbitration, Indian courts may grant interim measures where a party has assets in India and preservation of those assets is required. The applicant's crypto holdings were treated as digital assets held through the platform and, on the materials placed, were regarded as situated in India for the limited purpose of interim protection. The Court further held that crypto currency is a form of property capable of being possessed beneficially and of being held in trust, and that the cyber-attack affecting a different class of tokens could not, at the interim stage, justify freezing or impairing the applicant's separate XRP holdings. The binding effect of the Singapore scheme of arrangement and other broader questions were left for adjudication in arbitration.

Conclusion: The Section 9 petition was maintainable and the applicant was entitled to interim protection.

Final Conclusion: The applicant secured protective relief to preserve the disputed crypto assets pending arbitration, with the respondent directed to secure the equivalent amount by bank guarantee or escrow.

Ratio Decidendi: In a foreign-seated arbitration, Indian courts can grant interim relief under Section 9 where the subject asset is in India, and crypto currency is a property interest capable of trust-based protection against dissipation or impairment pending arbitration.

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