QUADRIGA INITIATIVE
CRYPTO WATCHDOG & FRAUD RECOVERY PLATFORM
A COMMUNITY-BASED, NOT-FOR-PROFIT
UNKNOWN
NOVEMBER 2019
CHINA
IDAX
DESCRIPTION OF EVENTS
“Cryptocurrency exchange IDAX Global has announced its CEO has gone missing.” The official announcement states, “IDAX Global CEO have gone missing with unknown cause and IDAX Global staffs were out of touch with IDAX Global CEO. For this reason, access to Cold wallet which is stored almost all cryptocurrency balances on IDAX has been restricted so in effect, deposit/withdrawal service cannot be provided.” “The IDAX staffers claim they have been unable to reach [Lei] Guorong and do not know his whereabouts at the moment.” The announcement came four days after the company said it would no longer provide services for users in China due to an official policy that makes exchanges illegal in the country. IDAX has since recommended that all users “refrain from using our all [sic] platform services.” “The shock announcement follows last week’s upheavals when the exchange revealed demand for IDAX withdrawals rose dramatically after it was pulled from the Chinese market.” “Presently, the staff of the exchange and the executive can neither claim to have access to the funds nor they can decipher the location where it is being held. So, due to these unfortunate circumstances; withdrawals and future deposits have been halted.” “IDAX’s official website states that it was founded in 2017 in Mongolia by an entity called the Global Blockchain Research Center (GBC).” “[T]he website of Nianxiang Group [indicated their] overseas business unit owns the Global Blockchain Research Center.” “According to Chinese business registration data, Nianxiang Group is solely owned by an individual called Lei Guorong and is registered in Shanghai.” “Exactly how much could have been stolen is pure speculation at this point. While little-known in the West, IDAX can’t be called a small exchange. By volume, the exchange was ranked 12th in the world with $757 million traded over a 24-hour period. At the very least, the amount stolen could be in the low millions of dollars but could be as high as hundreds of millions.”
All the funds appear to be held in a wallet under the control of a single individual Lei Guorong. It does not matter the size or international scope or reputation of the organization. If funds are held by one individual - they can disappear with them. The limited transparency and no legal backing presently available on exchanges make these types of situations highly possible. The situation would have been impossible with a proper multi-signature wallet held by multiple known individuals.
Q4 2019 Cryptocurrency Anti-Money Laundering Report - CipherTrace (Feb 12)
IDAX Global CEO goes missing (Mar 22)
China: Crypto Exchange IDAX Locks up Cold Wallet as CEO ‘Goes Missing’ (Mar 22)
IDAX Exchange's CEO Gone Rogue | Cryptopolitan (Mar 22)
China: Crypto Exchange IDAX Locks up Cold Wallet as CEO ‘Goes Missing’ - Cryptocurrency & Blockchain News (Mar 22)
IDAX Exit Scam: CEO Vanishes With Cold Storage Keys (Mar 22)
IDAX Crypto Exchange CEO Disappears Amidst Exit Scam Rumors | BTCMANAGER (Mar 25)
Missing CEO And Cold Wallet: The Impact Of IDAX Crisis (Mar 25)
Cryptocurrency Exchange IDAX Global CEO Missing Amid Reports of Exit from Chinese Market (Mar 25)
Millions potentially stolen as Asian cryptocurrency exchange CEO disappears - SiliconANGLE (Mar 25)
IDAX Global CEO sippin cocktails with Gerry Cotten : Buttcoin (Mar 25)
The Times of Crypto - IDAX Exchange Exit Scam? CEO Unreachable. (Jun 13)
