Part of the CustodyStress archive of observed Bitcoin custody incidents
Exchange custody
Cases in this category involve Bitcoin held on exchanges or custodial platforms. The user does not control private keys — access depends on the platform remaining operational and the account remaining accessible.
Exchange custody cases cluster around platform insolvency, account access loss, and regulatory action. Unlike self-custody failures, exchange cases often involve a recoverable path — but one that runs through legal or institutional processes that can take months or years.
512 observed cases
Blocked
135 (26%)
Constrained
181 (35%)
Survives
128 (25%)
Indeterminate
68 (13%)
Documentation absent — exchange 2014
Exchange custody
In the wake of the Mt. Gox collapse, several smaller exchanges voluntarily disclosed that they also held customer funds on a fractional basis. These disclosures
Multisig quorum failure — exchange 2014
Exchange custody
A Bitcoin startup that implemented a 3-of-5 multisig cold storage arrangement in early 2014 experienced a quorum failure when two key holders simultaneously bec
A series of 2014 Bitcointalk forum posts documented Bitcoin HYIP operators who held
Exchange custody
A series of 2014 Bitcointalk forum posts documented Bitcoin HYIP (High Yield Investment Program) operators who held customer BTC in wallets with no documented t
A federal court in Texas granted an emergency asset freeze against Trendon Shavers
Exchange custody
In July 2013 a federal court in Texas granted an emergency asset freeze against Trendon Shavers and Bitcoin Savings and Trust following the SEC's formal complai
Passphrase unavailable — Mt. Gox (2013)
Exchange custody
As Bitcoin exchanges in 2013 tightened account security, users who had created accounts in 2011 or 2012 with now-forgotten passwords and had not linked a recove
Their exchange account required 2FA via a phone that was lost in the accident.
Exchange custody
A 2013 documented case involved a Bitcoin holder who suffered a serious accident and was in a coma for an extended period. Their exchange account required 2FA v
Gox's Wells Fargo accounts holding approximately $2.9 million in the US subsidiary
Exchange custody
The DHS seized Mt. Gox's Wells Fargo accounts holding approximately $2.9 million in the US subsidiary Mutum Sigillum LLC's name, adding to the earlier Dwolla se
When the December 2013 price peak passed and investors sought to withdraw profits, some
Exchange custody
Several Bitcoin investment platforms that accepted deposits through 2013 maintained no published reserve audits and no documented withdrawal policy. When the De
Documentation absent — exchange custody (2013)
Exchange custody
PicoStocks's claim that both its hot and cold wallets were simultaneously emptied in November 2013 with no signs of network intrusion pointed to either an insid
Documentation absent — exchange — Australia 2013
Exchange custody
The Inputs.io operator TradeFortress disclosed after the hack that the service had maintained no documented insurance fund or reserve policy for user deposits.
On 15 May 2013 the US Department of Homeland Security issued a seizure warrant for Mt.
Exchange custody
On 15 May 2013 the US Department of Homeland Security issued a seizure warrant for Mt. Gox's Dwolla account held by subsidiary Mutum Sigillum LLC, for operating
Gox's new KYC procedures and were locked out of their account.
Exchange custody
A Bitcoin holder who fled their home country due to civil unrest in 2013 could only access their assets through a Mt. Gox account. From their new location in a
Documentation absent — exchange custody (2013)
Exchange custody
Multiple smaller Bitcoin lending operations on Bitcointalk continued into 2013 without audited balance sheets or documented liability records. When operators di
Documentation absent — exchange custody (2013)
Exchange custody
A pattern of 2013 Bitcointalk mining bond offerings involved issuers who claimed to represent real mining operations but published no verifiable hash rate data,
As Bitcoin price rose through 2013, the frequency of such incidents increased.
Exchange custody
Multiple documented 2013 LocalBitcoins in-person trade incidents involved armed robbery of Bitcoin sellers. Buyers arranged face-to-face trades and physically c
By mid-2013 the exchange was functionally insolvent but customers had no means to know
Exchange custody
Post-collapse investigation revealed Mt. Gox had no documented cold wallet audit procedure. From at least 2012 the exchange's hot wallet private keys were being
Owner death — exchange custody (2013)
Exchange custody
In 2013 at least several documented cases arose of Bitcoin holders who died with exchange accounts their families could not access. Exchanges had no death-discl
A 2013 early corporate Bitcoin treasury used a basic 3-of-5 multisig setup.
Exchange custody
A 2013 early corporate Bitcoin treasury used a basic 3-of-5 multisig setup. Two key holders left the company in a dispute and did not disclose their keys. A thi
Physical coercion — exchange custody (2013)
Exchange custody
As Bitcoin prices rose through early 2013, documented cases of Bitcoin holders being physically coerced into transferring funds increased. A forum-reported 2013
Gox in May 2013 over a failed partnership agreement.
Exchange custody
CoinLab filed a $75 million lawsuit against Mt. Gox in May 2013 over a failed partnership agreement. The litigation created legal uncertainty around Mt. Gox's U
Bitfunder's July 2013 hack went unannounced to customers.
Exchange custody
Bitfunder's July 2013 hack went unannounced to customers. Montroll continued operating the platform as if fully solvent, accepting new deposits, processing trad
Account frozen — exchange custody (2013)
Exchange custody
FinCEN's March 2013 guidance on virtual currency classified Bitcoin exchanges as money services businesses. By mid-2013 multiple US Bitcoin businesses began req
Forced relocation — exchange 2013
Exchange custody
A Bitcoin holder who was abruptly detained and later expelled from a country in 2013 had their primary Bitcoin holdings on a local exchange that required local
Gox seizure action from May 2013, also received a NY DFS subpoena in August 2013.
Exchange custody
Dwolla, already subject to the DHS/Mt. Gox seizure action from May 2013, also received a NY DFS subpoena in August 2013. Dwolla had already lost its ability to
Documentation absent — exchange custody (2013)
Exchange custody
When Inputs.io shut down in October 2013 after the double hack, TradeFortress posted a statement on Bitcointalk acknowledging the losses but providing no breakd
Translate