Machi Big Brother withdraws defamation lawsuit against ZachXBT

Taiwanese music celebrity Jeffrey Huang, also known as “Machi Big Brother,” has withdrawn a defamation lawsuit against internet sleuth ZachXBT.

In a bilateral announcement dated Aug. 14, Machi Big Brother said, “Zach has many times in the past been of great service to the crypto community and pursuing legal action against him was a last resort but not the right path,” after ZachXBT made a series of amendments to his article that sparked the defamation suit from Huang. 

I am withdrawing my defamation suit against @zachxbt.

Zach has many times in the past been of great service to the crypto community and pursuing legal action against him was a last resort but not the right path.

I appreciate that Zach has made important amendments to his…

— Machi Big Brother (@machibigbrother) August 14, 2023

Meanwhile, ZachXBT stated that he “updated my article with additional context from Machi + edits from myself,” leading Huang to withdraw the lawsuit. “While I am disappointed it went down the legal route in the first place I am appreciative we are able to find a resolution,” Zach wrote.

1/2 Today @machibigbrother has agreed to voluntarily withdraw the lawsuit. I have updated my article with additional context from Machi + edits from myself

While I am disappointed it went down the legal route in the first place I am appreciative we are able to find a resolution

— ZachXBT (@zachxbt) August 14, 2023

In June 2022, ZachXBT published an article on Medium alleging Huang embezzled funds related to his work at past crypto projects. Huang denied the allegations. The accusations have not been proven in a court of law. At the time of publication, ZachXBT’s original allegations regarding embezzlement have been removed. 

On June 16, 2023, Huang filed a defamation lawsuit against ZackXBT in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, writing, “I have consistently maintained that the allegations in his article are false.” When questioned about the likelihood of answering a court subpoena regarding his corporate activities, Huang wrote, “I’m legit asf.”

ZachXBT then posted a request asking for community donations for the former lawsuit’s legal fees. Within 24 hours, over $1 million was solicited, with notable contributions from Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao and Kraken co-founder Jesse Powell. A prominent on-chain researcher, ZachXBT’s investigative works have been cited as evidence in ongoing lawsuits and criminal proceedings. 

Magazine: Deposit risk: What do crypto exchanges really do with your money?