Binance users are suddenly having their coins converted to Bitcoin [Updated]

Numerous concerned users have taken to Reddit to complain that popular cryptocurrency exchange desk Binance has suddenly begun to sell their altcoins at market rate – without their consent and without any notification whatsoever.

“ WTF is happening,” one user cried out. “Binance just sold all my [altcoins] at market rate,” the customer continued, adding that all of his coins were now converted to Bitcoin.

“ It is true,” another user wrote . “It happened to my account. All my [a ltcoins] were sold and all I have is Bitcoin now.” The user went on to clarify that his two-factor authentication was enabled and there were no signs his account was compromised.

A spokesperson for the company has since confirmed it is investigating the issue on Reddit. “ We are investigating reports of some users having issues with their funds,” the Binance support rep wrote . “Our team is aware and investigating the issue as we speak. Please remain patient and we will provide an update as quickly as possible.”

The exchange desk hasn’t yet mentioned anything about this investigation on its official Twitter account, but numerous users are already chattering about it:

It remains unclear what is causing the bug for the time being.

This marks a second big mishap for Binance over the last month. Back in February, the exchange desk abruptly halted all trading for maintenance. The website ultimately resumed functionality almost a day after its promised timeframe. It did, however, make it up to users with some trading discounts.

We’ve contacted Binance for comment and will update this piece accordingly should we hear back.

Update: It appears that hours prior to the avalanche of complaints about wrongly exchanged altcoins, Binance was struggling with server downtime in the UK and several other areas.

A Binance rep confirmed its team is working on the issue, adding that it “is only affecting some users and we are investigating the root cause.” Please note that there is no evidence to suggest the two issues are related.

Update 2: The customer support rep has since told users that there is no need to change their passwords, hinting the exchange desk is struggling with a technical malfunction rather than a hack.

Update 3: Binance customer support reps on Telegram are now saying that “[t] here is no evidence of our exchange being compromised.”

The company has since reportedly suspended withdrawals, according to numerous reports from users.

Update 4: Binance has posted the following statement on Reddit:

The exchange desk seems to suggest that the issue is exclusively affecting users who had registered API keys for trading bot applications.

However, a swath of victims on both Reddit and Telegram insist their coins were converted even though they never used the Binance API. Similarly, there are reports from API users claiming their accounts have remained unaffected.

Update 5: Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao has assured users that all funds are safe, confirming the exchange desk is experiencing “irregularities in trading activity”:

Clarification: We have updated the title to reflect more accurately that no direct cause for the issue has been found as of yet. Binance is still investigating the technical malfunction.

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Here is why the price of RaiBlocks suddenly dropped by 20 percent

Emerging cryptocurrency RaiBlocks has lost 20 percent in value after shady exchange desk BitGrail suddenly announced that its platform will soon suspend support for non-European users.

The cryptocurrency, whose blockchain tech promises to deliver fast transactions at no fees, saw a drop from $18.60 to $14.90 earlier today. The dip followed an announcement from BitGrail claiming that, due to KYC -related legal complications, the company will force non-EU users to shut down their accounts.

“ BitGrail cannot work without mandatory KYC anymore,” said the anonymous BitGrail founder who goes by the name The Bomber. “Looks like exchanges in general can’t do it, even if some may ignore it. But BitGrail can’t.”

“It is in a country where you can’t ignore the law and even if there would be the opportunity, we wouldn’t do it,” the founder continued, linking to an announcement on the US Department of Treasury that was issued back in 2012.

The updated terms of service are yet to come into force. Once announced, users who do not meet the new terms will have two weeks to close their accounts. BitGrail says it will continue to operate as usual but “ only in European countries.”

The shifty exchange desk is among the few platforms that allow RaiBlocks trading, which has made it extremely popular within the XRB community. BitGrail is currently responsible for more than a quarter of the overall RaiBlocks trading volume for the past 24 hours.

For context, RaiBlocks accounts for almost 85 percent of BitGrail’s entire trading volume since yesterday, according to CoinMarketCap .

Following the ban on non-EU users, RaiBlocks enthusiasts rushed to its dedicated subreddit to raise their concerns BitGrail might be scamming them . The exchange desk has vehemently denied such claims.

BitGrail has currently disabled deposits and withdrawals for XRB. Indeed, the company recently had a public dispute with the RaiBlocks team following technical difficulties implementing XRB trading on its platform. RaiBlocks eventually released the following statement :

For the record, users can still trade their XRB for Bitcoin in case they want to move their funds to a personal wallet or another exchange.

Users that fail to comply with the updated terms will have their accounts closed down. Any remaining funds will be converted to Bitcoin and sent to their original wallet address.

“ XRB deposits and withdrawals are not availalbe [sic] at the moment.” said the anonymous BitGrail CEO. “But there is the possiblity to use BTC if someone just want to withdraw. That’s because BTC is aimed to stay fully functional (maybe with rare and/or unpredictable exceptions).”

The news comes only a day after CNBC Fast Money featured RaiBlocks as one of the top-performing cryptocurrencies among rivals Ethereum and Stellar, marking its stunning six-fold market share growth over the past couple of months.

Moonday Mornings: Russia’s security agency reportedly linked to $450M cryptocurrency loss

Welcome to another week of cryptocurrency and blockchain news. Before we get on with the week, let’s take a look at what happened over the weekend.

Here’s what went down.

1. According to a BBC Russia investigation, the country’s Federal Security Service (FSB) could be behind the disappearance of $450 million worth of cryptocurrency from Russia-based asset exchange WEX, The Moscow Times reports . The exchange’s CEO was allegedly forced by the FSB to hand over customer data. The report says this data was then used to steal cryptocurrency that was worth over $450 million at the time.

2. Despite continually butting heads with law makers and regulators, Facebook’s ‘ cryptocurrency’ project Libra is still moving forward . According to a blog post on the Libra developers page, community devs have deployed 34 projects to the Libra testnet including 10 wallets, 11 blockchain explorers, and one API. Whether this will come to anything, though, remains to be seen as Libra is still yet to appease global financial regulators.

3. At some point over the past week or so, the number of Bitcoin ATMs operating around the globe surpassed 6,000. There are now 6,003 Bitcoin ATMs, according to CoinATMRadar . Back in June , the number of cryptocurrency ATMs passed the 5,000 barrier. If this trend continues, the number of crypto ATMs in the world will pass the 10,000 mark in the next couple of years.

4. Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang has vowed to better regulate cryptocurrency if he is elected, this is according to a blog post on his campaign website . Yang says that the US is lagging behind the rest of the world in regulating the digital assets, and will have to play catch up to the rules dictated by other nations. As president, Yang vows to promote legislation to provide clarity on the cryptocurrency market , define what a token is and when it is a security, and provide consumer protections.

5. Germany’s financial regulator (BaFin) has flagged a Bulgarian cryptocurrency firm for operating without a license, Finance Magnates reports . According to a statement issued on the BaFin website last week, the company — 5 Capital — is now barred from operating in Germany. The company had been offering “illegal” cryptocurrency-based contracts for difference (CFDs) without a license.

Well there you go, now go get on with your week of cryptocurrency-based…. stuff.