In August 2025, a highly anticipated legal battle broke out between the cryptocurrency world and traditional media giants. Sun Yuchen, the founder of TRON, a highly influential figure in the global crypto space, has officially filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware against the globally renowned financial media (Bloomberg). The core of the lawsuit directly targets Bloomberg's plan (and eventual action) to publicly disclose his extremely confidential personal cryptocurrency holding details. Sun Yuchen believes that this not only seriously violates Bloomberg's previous promise of 'strict confidentiality' but also puts his and his family's safety at 'significant and irreparable' risk.
This case is not just a legal dispute between celebrities and the media; it is more like a magnifying glass, starkly presenting the profound contradiction between the inherent 'transparency' of blockchain technology and the privacy of personal assets and personal safety to the public.
Absolute confidentiality
According to the complaint submitted to the court, the origin of this incident stemmed from a 'proactive invitation' from Bloomberg earlier this year. A Bloomberg reporter reached out to Sun Yuchen's team, hoping to include him in the media's highly authoritative online 'Bloomberg Billionaires Index'.
Understanding the sensitivity of his crypto assets, Sun Yuchen initially hesitated about the proposal. However, the complaint states that Bloomberg's reporter provided clear and firm assurances during multiple communications: any financial information provided by Sun Yuchen, especially regarding cryptocurrencies, would be kept 'strictly confidential' and used solely for the internal team's 'calculation' of his net worth, without any external disclosure of details.
Only after obtaining what he deemed credible assurances did Sun Yuchen agree to provide detailed wallet addresses and asset data to Bloomberg's wealth verification team through secure communication channels. His understanding was that the net asset figure publicly disclosed on the billionaire index would only be a total sum and would not break down into the types of tokens, nor could it reveal specific holdings.
Moreover, to ensure absolute certainty, Sun Yuchen's team explicitly reiterated to Bloomberg in March this year: 'All information shared within the group is for verification purposes only and may not be used for any reporting.' At that time, Bloomberg did not raise any objections.
Promise modulation
However, this seemingly solid confidentiality promise took a shocking turn months later. At the end of July this year, Sun Yuchen's team was shocked to discover that a Bloomberg reporter had used these confidential data, which they had promised to keep secret, in another unrelated article. Subsequently, the draft of the personal page on the billionaire index they received directly and specifically listed the types and quantities of crypto assets held by Sun Yuchen.
Sun Yuchen's legal team pointed out that this detailed disclosure approach is vastly different from how Bloomberg treats other cryptocurrency billionaires, such as Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong or Binance founder CZ. For the latter, Bloomberg typically only publishes a total asset valuation based on public statements.
The complaint emphasizes that publishing such precise asset details would provide criminals with a clear 'roadmap'. They could use 'address clustering techniques' to easily associate these public wallet addresses with Sun Yuchen himself by analyzing on-chain transaction patterns. Once identity is fully matched with specific assets, he would face significant threats from hackers, thieves, and even organized crime groups, among which the most chilling is the so-called 'wrench attacks'—i.e., coercing victims to transfer their crypto assets through physical violence.
Due to the 'irreversible' nature of cryptocurrency transactions, once assets are illegally transferred, there is almost no possibility of recourse. The complaint ironically mentioned that Bloomberg itself has reported multiple cases of risks of kidnapping or extortion due to exposure of crypto assets.
Legal offense and defense
Based on the above reasons, Sun Yuchen claims that Bloomberg's actions involve 'public disclosure of private facts' and 'promissory estoppel', meaning that Bloomberg violated the original promise that led him to disclose confidential information, and thus should be prohibited from going back on its word.
He requested the court to issue a temporary, preliminary, and even permanent injunction to prevent Bloomberg from publishing the details of his asset breakdown and sought compensation for related legal fees.
However, Bloomberg quickly responded. Its lawyer pointed out in a letter to the court that Sun Yuchen's application for a temporary restraining order (TRO) had already become 'meaningless' as the relevant report was published on the evening of August 11, nearly two hours before Sun Yuchen’s lawyer formally notified the court of the TRO application.
Bloomberg stated that it would argue in subsequent formal opposition that the injunction request violates the freedom of the press rights protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution.
According to the already public Bloomberg reports, Sun Yuchen's net worth mainly comes from the following parts:
TRX: Holding over 60 billion coins, accounting for about 63% of the total supply, thus subject to a 75% liquidity risk discount.
BTC: Approximately 17,000 coins
ETH: Approximately 224,000 coins
USDT: Approximately 700,000 coins
HTX exchange equity: Approximately 90% of HTX (formerly Huobi) equity, estimated to generate about $1.3 billion in revenue in 2024.
Some market commentators believe the real focus of the dispute may lie in his holding of TRX, which amounts to as much as 60 billion coins. This figure far exceeds previous public estimates and clearly reveals his highly concentrated control over the TRON ecosystem.
Intractable paradox
Although the lawsuit is still ongoing, the core sensitive information has already been made public. Even if the court ultimately rules in favor of Sun Yuchen, it would be difficult to reverse the reality of asset details being exposed.
This case transcends the individual case itself; it sharply raises a deeper, even intractable paradox faced by the entire crypto industry: the soul of blockchain technology lies in its openness and transparency, which helps to build market trust; but when this transparency combines with enormous wealth, it can instantly become a lethal threat to personal safety in the absence of adequate protection.
How can a delicate balance be found between the two? The lawsuit between Sun Yuchen and Bloomberg, regardless of the final outcome, has sounded the alarm for all participants in this emerging field—from investors, entrepreneurs to regulators and media.
