A timeline of concerns

In a notice titled “Enhancing Transparency and Trust”, BitMart listed four hot-wallet addresses (three on Ethereum/BNB Chain, one Bitcoin) and said they are only “a portion” of its wallets. It said it was working on a Merkle-tree proof of reserves. The notice was last edited on 31 March 2025.

We have not found a published Merkle-tree proof of reserves, or any audit or attestation of BitMart’s reserves, since.

BitMart said claims online that users “cannot withdraw” mainly stemmed from its risk controls against an organised “volume-farming” group using 239 linked accounts, and that all operations were running normally. It said it would publish its proof of reserves “at an appropriate time”. It gave no date and named no auditor.

The statement was updated on 27 August 2026. The page does not show what changed.

BitMart told users in the United States to close all positions and withdraw their assets by 23:59 UTC on 8 August 2026, after which it may restrict their accounts. It pointed eligible US users to BitMart U.S., which it described as a separate platform.

In two notices, BitMart delisted more than 50 tokens (including FTT, WAVES, LUNA, LRC, STORJ and NEIRO) from 07:00 UTC on 24 July. It said withdrawals of those tokens close at 07:00 UTC on 25 September 2026, and warned that not withdrawing in time “may result in assets loss”.

Two days before the wind-down notice, BitMart raised the monthly custody fee on accounts inactive for two to three years to 1%, and on accounts inactive for three years or more to 2%, with a minimum of 10 USDT a month, effective immediately.

BitMart announced it would wind down its trading platform:

• New registrations and deposits suspended from 01:30 UTC on 26 July 2026
• All trading to end at 01:00 UTC on 26 August 2026
• Users told to submit withdrawal requests before 05:00 UTC on 26 August 2026
• Operations planned to cease at 15:59 UTC on 31 January 2027

The notice says withdrawals are subject to compliance review and that processing times may be extended. It gives no maximum processing time and does not name the legal entity or the regions affected. It was updated on 14 September 2026; the page does not show what changed.

After the announcement, BitMart’s Global CEO, Nenter (Nathan) Chow, said on X that the company had told him on 24 July that his employment was being terminated, and that he had not been consulted on the closure, according to The Block. The Block reported that BitMart had not publicly addressed his statement.

On-chain analysts Lookonchain reported that only 58 wallets had withdrawn about US$805,000 in the 24 hours after the announcement, according to The Crypto Times. Users posted that their withdrawals were stuck as pending. CryptoSlate reported similar delays, citing on-chain data.

After “multiple complaints”, the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) said BitMart, BitMart Exchange, Bachi.Tech Corporation, GBM Global Holding Company Limited and related entities “are not, and have never been, registered, licensed, regulated, or otherwise authorised” by CIMA to carry on virtual asset business in or from the Cayman Islands.

BitMart founder Sheldon Xia said on social media that the company had not run away and was carrying out an asset inventory and system maintenance, according to press reports. He did not give figures for assets, liabilities or a withdrawal timetable. Around the same time, users and projects reported balances they could not withdraw, which BitMart disputed.

CoinDesk reported that a post on BitMart’s Chinese-language X account called for disclosure of the company’s wallets, assets and liabilities, and payment of staff. BitMart’s founder said the account had been hacked and dismissed the claims. No reserve figures were published.

BitMart said it was developing a possible restructuring plan “as an alternative to a full wind-down”, which may include a phased resumption of some operations and distributions to creditors. It appointed the law firm White & Case as restructuring counsel and said it would try to give a further update by 9 September 2026.

CryptoTicker queried BitMart’s public API and reported that withdrawals were enabled on only 1,513 of 3,898 coin and network combinations, and that 211 had deposits switched on while withdrawals were switched off.

The Crypto Times reported no new operational updates from BitMart’s official X accounts since 21 August, while users continued to report withdrawals stuck as “pending” with no transaction hash.

Echo Base said it had formed an ad hoc committee of BitMart claimholders and hired lawyers, and that it was considering legal options, according to Unchained. It said earlier approaches to BitMart had gone unanswered.

Instead of the promised roadmap, BitMart announced it had appointed Alvarez & Marsal as financial adviser to assess its financial position and “arrangements for orderly withdrawals”. It acknowledged “the withdrawal restrictions imposed over the past period”, promised a user feedback channel and an independent third party to oversee operations, and said it would give a further update within three weeks. It gave no reserve figures and no withdrawal timetable.

BitMart launched a “User Engagement Portal” for questions and feedback. It said the portal is not a channel for processing individual withdrawals, that submitting a ticket does not change the status of any account or asset, and that it may not be able to reply to every submission.

BitMart published a notice titled “Announcement on BitMart's Initial Indicative Proposal and Roadmap”. [Summarise what it says, neutrally.]

BitMart published a notice titled “Announcement on BitMart's Initial Indicative Proposal and Roadmap”.