WuBlockchain
On-chain investigator ZachXBT issued a community alert flagging multiple reports that AscendEX, the centralized exchange formerly known as Bitmax, has been delaying or failing to process user withdrawals for days or weeks.
After reviewing the exchange's known hot wallets on Arkham and TRM, ZachXBT said reserves appear thin on large-cap tokens including ETH, USDT and SOL, a pattern consistent with a liquidity crunch rather than routine processing lag.
Why it matters
AscendEX was founded by George (Jing) Cao and Ariel Ling in 2018 and was hit by a $78 million exploit attributed to North Korea's Lazarus Group in December 2021. A repeat run-in with withdrawal delays at a venue with that history sharpens the read: any exchange that has already been drained once is watched more closely the second time wallets look light.
ZachXBT's method matters here too. Hot-wallet balances on Arkham and TRM are public, so the call is reproducible rather than anecdotal. Users who still hold funds on AscendEX can verify the same on-chain footprint themselves rather than rely on rumour.
Market impact
For AscendEX users, the immediate question is whether the queue is a treasury-management problem the exchange works through, or the early shape of a withdrawal halt. Comparable episodes at other centralized exchanges have ended with full halts once processing slips past a week. The next data point to watch is whether hot-wallet balances rebuild or continue draining; once reserves visibly top up across ETH, USDT and SOL, the liquidity warning clears.
Frequently asked questions
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What did ZachXBT report about AscendEX?
ZachXBT issued a community alert saying he observed multiple reports of AscendEX delaying or failing to process user withdrawals for days or weeks. After reviewing the exchange's hot wallets on Arkham and TRM, he said reserves looked thin on ETH, USDT and SOL.
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Why does thin ETH, USDT and SOL reserves matter?
Hot-wallet balances are the first line a withdrawal queue draws from. When those wallets run light on large-cap, liquid assets, processing slows because the exchange has to source funds elsewhere before paying users out.
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Has AscendEX been hacked before?
Yes. AscendEX was reportedly exploited for $78 million in December 2021, with the attack attributed to North Korea's Lazarus Group.
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Who founded AscendEX?
AscendEX, formerly Bitmax, was founded in 2018 by George (Jing) Cao and Ariel Ling.
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How can users verify the reserves claim themselves?
ZachXBT cited public on-chain analytics platforms Arkham and TRM. Users can pull up the exchange's known hot-wallet addresses on those tools and check current balances in ETH, USDT and SOL directly.
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