IDAX Freezes Cold Wallet Transactions Following CEO Disappearance

Chinese cryptocurrency exchange IDAX has frozen withdrawals and deposits after the alleged disappearance of its global CEO. The cryptocurrency exchange made an announcement on Nov. 29, claiming that it had closed down its operations after its staff members were unable to make contact with the company’s CEO.   

In the announcement, IDAX stated that it is still trying to locate its CEO’s whereabouts and trying to make sense of the situation. While the announcement highlighted that the IDAX team is in the process of establishing a contingency plan for the exchange, there was no mention of a timeline to enact the proposed contingency plan or regarding when normal services can be expected to resume.

IDAX Cold Wallet Locked Up

The exchange announced that the reason for the CEO's disappearance is still a mystery at this point. The exchange has informed users that access to its cold wallet which stores nearly all cryptocurrency assets has been restricted and withdrawals and deposits are not allowed. It has advised all crypto users to stop using its services and platform for the time being. The company’s cold wallet is, therefore, on lockdown to protect users’ money.

However, the exchange hasn’t specified the value of cryptocurrency held in its cold wallet.

The crypt exchange didn’t directly link the CEO with cold storage wallet access nor did it say that users’ funds were at risk.

The announcement comes just days after the cryptocurrency exchange informed users on Nov. 24 about congestion holding up withdrawals and deposits and that it would no longer offer services to China-based users.  

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