In his decision, Judge Gendall explained that it is his view that cryptocurrency was property as it met, “some degree of permanence or stability,” which is a requirement of Section 2 of the Companies Act. This means that the cryptocurrencies are owned by the account holders, and will not form part of the pool of assets available to unsecured creditors. The decision was firstly driven by the fact that cryptocurrency is “property” for the purposes of the Companies Act 1993. And secondly, the account holders’ cryptocurrency is held in trust by Cryptopia on behalf of users.

• In October 2021, Grant Thornton put the second stage of the claims process in motion.
• You can access the Identity Verification from User Center – KYC or access it directly from your dashboard.
• While there are still a large number of Cryptopia users yet to be accounted for, the Grant Thornton customer support says it has engaged with 93,700 claimants.
• The liquidators of the now-defunct crypto exchange Cryptopia started the distribution of funds to users who were affected by a major hack that happened nearly six years ago.
• Grant Thornton has spent over NZ$20.5 million on the liquidation process as per this latest report.

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Explore our FAQs for quick and reliable solutions to get started or enhance your crypto experience. The Cryptopia liquidation story, with its twists and turns, legal battles, and the quest for equitable asset distribution, provides a vivid illustration of the complexities inherent in the digital age. It serves as a reminder of the vigilance required in protecting digital assets and the need for a legal framework that can adapt to the unique challenges of this evolving landscape. The saga takes another turn with the misuse of confidential Cryptopia information, a breach that has seen legal action against individuals such as Victor Cattermole. This misuse not only violates court orders but also poses a significant threat to the privacy and security of account holder information. The liquidators’ efforts to protect this sensitive data reflect the ongoing battle against unauthorized access and exploitation within the digital asset space.

• This announcement was made after comments from Binance CEO Richard Teng earlier in December, where he said it was too early to discuss whether Binance might fully re-establish operations in the United States.
• Taken over by the accounting and advisory organization Grant Thornton LLP, Cryptopia’s liquidation process has been going on for a couple of years now.
• You should open up wallets then so those of us who did not have our coins stolen can remove our stuff from your Exchange

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A small victory was won in February 2020, when the high court of Christchurch ruled that Cryptopia users are entitled to the funds that the exchange was keeping custody of. Since then, the investors have been in a state of limbo and the assets have remained frozen for a couple of years. Cryptopia continued saying they were going to restore all funds within a few months. Currently, the exchange’s official web domain, cryptopia.co.nz, redirects you to Grant Thornton’s web page, where you can keep yourself updated on the latest developments. After the hack, Cryptopia announced that they would give a rebate to users who lost their funds, but the team didn’t give further explanation as to how. If you are into cryptocurrency trading, you must have learned by now that it’s a risky business – either by doing your research or by having your fingers burned and learning it the hard way.

The process involves reaching out to account holders to register their claims and creating a dedicated customer support portal on Zendesk to assist account holders with their asset transfer process. You can follow the updates regarding the process from Grant Thornton’s page on Cryptopia liquidation. In December 2020, Grant Thornton opened the Cryptopia claims portal to start the process of returning funds to the Cryptopia account holders. The liquidator company draws a roadmap for the claims process, consisting of claim registration, identity verification, claim acceptance, and finally, asset transfer. Taken over by the accounting and advisory organization Grant Thornton LLP, Cryptopia’s liquidation process has been going on for a couple of years now.

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The liquidator of the defunct cryptocurrency exchange Cryptopia has told former customers they can now begin making claims for the return of their funds. Judge Gendall says the courts had to clarify concerns around the legal nature and status of the digital assets and potential equitable interests in them. Whether digital assets could be considered property and if Cryptopia’s account holders had rights to this property.

Cryptopia Exchange, Currently in Liquidation, Gets Hacked Again: Report

Liquidators had to forensically reconstruct parts of the exchange wallet based on on-chain movements to corroborate customer withdrawals. Grant Thornton has reported that some restrained assets attributed to the hack and theft have been traced to the USA, and that US law enforcement has been petitioned to offer support. Another notable aspect of the liquidator’s report is the costs involved with the process.

Users of Hacked Exchange Cryptopia Can Now Make Claims to Recover Funds

The liquidators encourage all remaining account holders to register on the claims portal and complete the necessary steps to become eligible for future distributions. The liquidators would also like to thank all account holders for their continued patience and cooperation as they work to return assets to all eligible account holders. Stolen crypto that may be recovered could go back to account holders who contributed to “hack recovery costs” as well as users who had their funds stolen. This is a major step forward in the liquidation process, which began in 2020 with the establishment of the Cryptopia claims portal.

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“The Liquidators and Cryptopia can use the assets recovered by the FBI for further tracing and recovery actions,” the message said. The first round of distribution will see qualifying users getting their bitcoin BTC$92,123.27 and dogecoin DOGE$0.1495 back in the next three months, the email said. This announcement was made after comments from Binance CEO Richard Teng earlier in December, where he said it was too early to discuss whether Binance cryptopia withdrawal might fully re-establish operations in the United States. Despite past challenges, Binance.US is still focused on offering competitive features, including 0% fee trading for BTC/USDC and support for 160 cryptocurrencies alongside staking for over 20 cryptos. Binance.US, the United States-based subsidiary of the global crypto exchange Binance, announced plans to resume U.S. dollar services in early 2025.

The focus will be on the user accounts that are believed to have received funds from the hack. This narrative is not just a tale of a company’s end but a reflection on the broader challenges of managing digital assets within existing legal frameworks. It underscores the importance of clear communication, the adherence to terms and conditions, and the rigorous protection of confidential information. As the Cryptopia account holders navigate through this maze, the lessons learned here will undoubtedly inform future engagements in the digital asset space, serving as a cautionary tale for investors, companies, and legal professionals alike. At the heart of this unfolding drama are the communications from entities such as Epic Trust Limited, the Cogito Metaverse, and the Principality of Cogito. These entities have approached Cryptopia account holders with propositions to buy their entitlements, a move fraught with legal and ethical questions.

The liquidators, operating under Grant Thornton, have issued a stern warning against these unsolicited offers, highlighting the confusion among account holders regarding the legitimacy of these third parties. This confusion underscores the challenges faced by individuals navigating the post-breach landscape of digital asset management. Following this first distribution, liquidators will continue to follow the approved process.

Ethereum, Dentacoin, Oyster Pearl, Lisk ML, Centrality, Mothership, Ormeus, DAPS, Zap, and Pillar were the largest number of cryptocurrencies stolen. The Report says that customers did not have individual wallets, and it would be impossible to determine individual ownership using just the cryptographic keys registered within the Cryptopia wallets. Cryptopia operated as a centralized exchange and customer trades occurred on the exchange’s internal ledger, without any confirmation on blockchains like Bitcoin or Ethereum. The international nature of Cryptopia has meant that actions have been filed in the United States, Singapore, and Malaysia to track assets.

After a month of the hack on February 14, 2019, the exchange platform resumed its operations after receiving a green signal from local police. While the police were continuing their investigation, the staff was given access to the building. On January 15th, 2019 the Cryptopia Twitter account announced that the trading platform had suffered a major security breach resulting in “significant losses.” Trading services were suspended and a police investigation was launched that night. This led to a lockdown and a physical investigation of the company’s headquarters the next day.