EXMO.com is closing

As a result of the sanctions, the platform’s operations have been almost completely paralyzed, and a portion of user assets has been frozen by third-party custodians, exchanges and banking providers.

Effective immediately:

▪️New account registrations are closed.
▪️New deposits will no longer be processed.
▪️Trades are restricted to closing only- no new positions can be opened.

Our users have always been our top priority throughout the platform’s many years of operation. As an increasing share of user assets is being frozen by custodial providers and partner exchanges every day, we have made the difficult decision to wind down the platform and distribute all unfrozen assets to our clients as transparently and fairly as possible.

Why a Portion of Balances Has Been Adjusted

We believe it is important to make the return process as transparent as possible. Therefore, we would like to explain which portion of the assets cannot be returned now due to freezes imposed by providers and the EXMO hack that occurred in 2020.

In December 2020, exmo.com’s hot wallets were compromised in a hacking incident, resulting in the theft of a range of cryptocurrencies, which were transferred to the following addresses:

▪️BTC: 1A4PXZE5j8v7UuapYckq6fSegmY5i8uUyq
▪️ETC: 0x4ba6b2ff35055af5406923406442cd3ab29f50ce
▪️XRP: rwU8rAiE2eyEPz3sikfbHuqCuiAtdXqa2v (Destination Tag: 2033412069)
▪️ETH + USDT: 0x4ba6b2ff35055af5406923406442cd3ab29f50ce
▪️BCH: qrfrw5q9gag2vp6jc5nlx0haplm2jlhx9vsvxd9u3e
▪️ZEC: t1StUQiw1YyHT515xDxwxjfhEcw2iGSq2yL

The incident was publicly disclosed at the time, reported to law enforcement in the United Kingdom, and shared with blockchain analytics firms to help flag and trace the stolen funds.

Unfortunately, all of these efforts proved unsuccessful: according to a report by the analytics company Crystal, the stolen funds were moved through various cryptocurrency exchanges, including Poloniex, Binance, and others.

Since 2020, the company has directed all of its profits toward covering the resulting shortfall. However, due to the substantial rise in cryptocurrency prices since then, the value of this shortfall relative to our obligations has continued to grow rather than shrink.

In addition to the losses from the 2020 hack, a portion of the platform’s assets has been frozen as a direct consequence of the recently imposed sanctions. Various custodial, banking, and payment providers have suspended or blocked access to funds held on the platform’s behalf, and certain critical transaction-processing services have been suspended entirely.  These sanction-related freezes are a separate and additional cause of the current shortfall, alongside the unrecovered funds from the 2020 hack. 

The currently uncovered portion amounts to 29.4% of the platform’s total obligations to users. This 29.4% has therefore been deducted proportionally from all client account balances. In exchange, an equivalent amount of a new token, USDRecover (USDRec), has been credited to each affected account.

What is USDRecover (USDRec)? USDRec is a debt claim token representing your right for proportional distribution of assets that might be recovered. If, during the platform’s wind-down period, any frozen funds are released or any stolen funds are recovered through our ongoing legal efforts, USDRec tokens will be exchanged proportionally for the recovered assets. We will provide updates as this process develops. USDRec token is not tradable and not withdrawable.

Withdrawals

The platform will remain active for a limited period specifically to allow all clients to withdraw their assets.

▪️Withdrawal requests are being processed in the order they are received.
▪️Due to the current operating conditions, processing is taking longer than usual — in some cases several days. We apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate your patience.
▪️We strongly encourage all users to initiate withdrawals as soon as possible. Additional fees or restrictions may be introduced in the future as conditions evolve, so earlier requests are likely to be processed under more favorable terms.
▪️Your account must be fully verified for withdrawals to be processed. Please monitor the email address associated with your account, as our support team may contact you directly to assist with your request.
▪️Withdrawals can only be initiated through your personal account on the web version of the platform. You must log in using all security features currently enabled on your account, initiate the withdrawal request, and confirm it according to the standard procedure.

Assets conversion

Trading (assets conversion) will remain available in order to allow you to convert some assets into currencies that are available for withdrawal. Please note that due to the current circumstances, we cannot guarantee normal liquidity levels across all trading pairs, and prices or spreads may be affected as a result.

Withdrawal Fees

Withdrawal fees might be increased to reflect the additional operational costs the platform is currently facing, including the loss of certain transaction-processing services suspended by providers as a result of the sanctions.

Verification (KYC/AML)

Depending on the current verification status of your account, you may be asked to complete additional identity re-verification or provide further documentation before your withdrawal can be processed. This is a standard compliance step and helps ensure assets are returned to their rightful owners.

A Final Note

We understand this news is difficult, and we deeply regret the impact on our users. We are committed to returning as much of our clients’ assets as possible and to keeping you informed throughout this process. Thank you for your trust and patience during this challenging time.