Bankrupt Crypto Exchange Bittrex U.S. to Resume Withdrawals from Thursday

According to information received by CoinDesk, the U.S. division of Bittrex, a cryptocurrency exchange, is scheduled to allow customer withdrawals starting Thursday. This decision comes as a result of a ruling by a bankruptcy court in Delaware. In May, Bittrex filed for bankruptcy and sought permission for customers to regain access to their holdings. However, the U.S. government, which claims to be owed millions of dollars for sanctions violations, opposed this request.

Judge Brendan Shannon, in his ruling on Tuesday, granted authorization to Bittrex U.S. and its affiliates to enable customers with undisputed, noncontingent, and liquidated claims to withdraw both cryptocurrency assets and fiat currency from the trading platform, limited to the amount of their claims. The ruling clarified that it does not determine the legal ownership of these assets or establish a preference for customer claims over those of the government. It also noted the possibility of future clawbacks. Patty Tomasco, a partner at Quinn Emmanuel law firm representing Bittrex, informed CoinDesk via email that the platform will resume operations for withdrawals on Thursday, June 15.

After announcing its intention to shut down its U.S. operations in March, the exchange witnessed significant withdrawals totaling millions of dollars. Subsequently, on May 8, the U.S. unit filed for bankruptcy. By May 10, the company disclosed that it possessed $300 million in customer funds and cryptocurrencies within its U.S. arm. Typically, bankruptcy proceedings involve a suspension of transactions; however, the company argued against this measure, aiming to allow customers to retrieve their funds without prolonged legal disputes.

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