Hong Kong crypto exchange BitForex is reportedly holding millions of its users’ funds
The BitForex cryptocurrency exchange has suspended withdrawals for at least the past three days without any reason given. The exchange has also reportedly stopped talking to its customers, leaving them wondering about their funds.
On-chain investigator ZachXBT said in a February 23 X post that three BitForex hot wallets saw withdrawals of about $56.5 million in crypto before transactions were stopped being processed.
Seeing some suspicious activity with the crypto exchange @bitforexcom.
On Feb 23 their hot wallets saw outflows of ~$56.5M. Shortly after this time withdrawals stopped processing with no official announcements having been made since.
Currently users are asking questions on… pic.twitter.com/gFEcwExHKh
— ZachXBT (@zachxbt) February 26, 2024
The exchange hasn’t updated its X account since May 2023. Users are reporting issues with their accounts on the official BitForex Telegram channel, ranging from restricted account access to $0 in assets showing on the dashboard. Several customers also shared a pop-up screen indicating they’re blocked from accessing the BitForex website.
BitForex was one of the leading global crypto exchanges in capitalization in September 2023, with a daily trading volume of about $2.6 billion. CoinMarketCap doesn’t currently furnish BitForex live data.
In April 2023, Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) blamed BitForex for violating its fund settlement regulations, saying the exchange had been doing business without proper registration. However, BitForex hasn’t drawn any meaningful attention from regulators or the media since then.
Another Hong Kong exchange moved about $55.6 million worth of Ether from its wallets last week. Atom Asset Exchange (AAX) ceased all operations on November 13, 2022, two days after FTX filed for bankruptcy. After the shutdown, AAX’s former CEO Thor Chan and board member Haoming Liang were apprehended by Hong Kong police in 2022.
The identity of AAX’s founder is still unknown. The individual is allegedly still at large with HKD230 million ($29.41 million) in user assets and private keys with access to exchange wallets.
