Institutional lockout — exchange custody (2022)

Survives

Case description

Crypto lending platform Nexo announced in October 2022 that it was winding down its US operations following regulatory pressure from multiple state attorneys general. US customers had to withdraw their assets within a specified window or face an extended claims process. Customers who did not act promptly—due to unfamiliarity with the deadline, being abroad, or other circumstances—found themselves navigating a time-pressured institutional process to recover assets from a platform that had been operating normally days before.

Custody context

Stress condition	Vendor lockout
Custody system	Exchange custody
Outcome	Survives
Documentation	Unknown
Year observed	2022
Country	International

Structural dependencies observed

Institutional cooperation required

Outcome interpretation

Access remained possible under the reported conditions.

Source

Publicly Reported

Evidence type

News article

Evidence link

https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2022/07/15/the-fall-of-celsius-network-a-timeline-of-the-crypto-lenders-descent-into-insolvency

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Framework references

Where Bitcoin Custody Intersects Legal and Fiduciary Authority

Where custody creates gaps in estate planning, fiduciary duty, and professional responsibility.

Professional Scope Boundary Matrix

What each professional or product covers, what they do not, and where gaps form between them.

The Independent Assessment Layer in Bitcoin Custody

How independent diagnostic layers emerge when multiple parties depend on shared infrastructure.