Elliott Denied Appeal Over LME Nickel Ruling at UK’s Top Court

March 20, 2025

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(Bloomberg) — Elliott Investment Management was refused permission to take its case against the London Metal Exchange over the 2022 nickel crisis to the UK Supreme Court.

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Elliott had challenged the LME’s decision to retroactively cancel $12 billion in trades when nickel prices spiked in March 2022, but two UK courts ruled that the exchange’s actions were lawful.

In an update on its website, the Supreme Court said that permission to appeal had been refused “on the ground that the appeal does not raise an arguable point of law.”

Elliott, which had bet on higher nickel prices, claimed the LME’s decision cost it more than $450 million. In 2023, a UK court rejected its case, ruling that the LME’s executives had wide discretion to make urgent decisions about the market, and last year the Court of Appeal upheld that decision.

The decision comes as the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority fined the LME £9.2 million ($11.9 million) for its failings in the crisis, though the censure related to the LME’s systems and controls rather than its ultimate decision to cancel the trades.

An LME spokesperson said the Supreme Court’s decision to deny the appeal “draws a line under these judicial review proceedings” and that the LME and LME Clear would now be able to focus on the future.

An Elliott spokesperson declined to comment.