CoinEx Shuts Down After Nine Years, Blames Prolonged Market Slump and Rising Compliance Costs
CoinEx Shuts Down After Nine Years, Blames Prolonged Market Slump and Rising Compliance Costs #
Hong Kong-based cryptocurrency exchange CoinEx has announced it will cease operations after nearly nine years, becoming one of the latest centralized trading venues to exit during a prolonged slump in crypto markets.
Founder Haipo Yang confirmed the closure on social media on September 15, 2026, with the exchange citing a prolonged market downturn, declining trading volumes, falling liquidity, and the mounting cost of maintaining regulatory compliance across multiple jurisdictions. According to the company’s official announcement, revenues no longer justified the security and compliance risks involved in running the platform.
The wind-down is being executed in stages. New account registrations, referral commissions, and reward payouts were halted immediately upon the announcement, and futures markets shifted to reduce-only mode. All non-spot services, including margin trading, loans, staking, and earn products, are scheduled to end on September 22. Spot trading will close on September 29, along with the CoinEx Smart Chain and decentralized exchange OneSwap. Users will retain the ability to withdraw their funds through December 22, 2026, after which any remaining balances will be placed in independent custody subject to a 5% monthly fee. Custody claims can be submitted through August 22, 2028.
CoinEx has stated that its reserve ratio remains above 100%, meaning all user assets are fully backed. The exchange is also offering to repurchase its native CoinEx Token (CET) at 0.005 USDT apiece, a premium to recent market prices, with no quantity cap.
The closure follows a series of regulatory setbacks. In 2023, CoinEx reached a settlement with the New York Attorney General, agreeing to refund approximately $1.1 million to investors and pay over $600,000 in penalties before exiting the U.S. market. Canadian regulators subsequently restricted the platform for operating without registration, and Quebec authorities blocked access in 2025, directing remaining customers to withdraw their assets.
CoinEx joins several other exchanges winding down operations. Derivatives exchange BitMEX, which operated for eleven years, is scheduled to complete its own shutdown on September 23, and Bitmart announced its closure in July. Analysts attribute the wave of exchange exits to a sharp drop in retail spot-trading activity as crypto asset prices have remained well below their late-2025 peaks.
Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao offered some reassurance following the announcement, noting that recent industry wind-downs had allowed customers to reclaim their assets, a marked contrast, he said, to the collapses of previous market cycles in which user funds were frozen or lost entirely. CoinEx echoed that sentiment, urging users not to wait until the final days of the withdrawal window, citing the risk of blockchain congestion and unpredictable network fees.
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