Bitcoin Forum

I used bittrex.com a long time ago (many years actually) and I have there a bit more then 0.5btc sitting in the account.
back then it wasn't THAT much, but now it became a lot more.

For some reason they do not tell, they decided to block the access from my account (I haven't used it for few years) and want me to send them tons of private documents! all this without explaining why, and while I have access to my email + password with 2fa AND a verified account.

Of course I can give them all the stuff they requested as i'm the legit owner, but i'm not interested in doing so as it is very private.
any suggestions?

You're late to the party lol. The reason they went down from being the top exchange some time in 2017 was because they suddenly enforced KYC among users and prevented withdrawals of many accounts. I remember some migrated to exchanges like Cryptopia but most of their users moved to Binance as they don't immediately ask KYC unless your withdrawal is 2 BTC above.

If you're looking for reasons why your account is locked, it's probably the usual compliance with regulators and nothing to do with your dormant account. IIRC, it was last year that they require "enhanced" verification and will lock accounts that fails to comply.

Suggestions? Binance for the same reason stated above but don't use it if you're from US (they'll block you). If you hate submitting private information, you try Bisq DEX and other P2P platforms. Just remember that they don't have the same liquidity that centralized exchanges offers.

edit to add link/s:
List of P2P/no-KYC exchanges (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5180421.0)

You might wanna try instant exchanges too. A lot of them don't require KYC - list of Instant exchanges (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5218464.0)

Actually, get your founds out of exchanges in general if you don't like submitting AML/KYC. It's pretty much inevitable for exchanges to be requiring these documents anyway, it's mostly just a matter of when. Slooowly but surely.

Also, can't believe I have to say this in late 2020: NOT YOUR KEYS, NOT YOUR COINS. https://notyourkeys.org

Thanks for the Info! so in other words i'm screwed? Feel like an exchange scammed me, gave me an IOU note that i can not use.


I know that... and I feel like an idiot as I lost btc in Mtgox... I guess I keep repeating the same mistakes

How did you get a verified account when you didn’t participate in KYC? Anyway, there are two ways I think you could do this.

• Give your documents for KYC if you need the money
• Move on and forget

I think it depends on how much you can afford and if you need it. To some people, it's a lot, but maybe for you, it might not be as much.

I had an account in Bittrex, but it became somewhat a dying exchange, and I don't know why. I liked it before, but now, it has a low volume compared to the top ones. Maybe you should just go to Binance or something.

If your assets are still around, I think you will look into them immediately for verification. I have also used bitrex from 2016 and until now it is still intact, even though I no longer trade there, because I have withdrawn all the assets. In the last few weeks I opened a Bitrex account and there was a notification requiring me to re-declare the document, as I didn't have any assets there, so I released it.
In my opinion, this is possible to strengthen user security and to minimize theft.

Since you refuse to give them what they asked, pretty much.

Well, you could say that.

You're still lucky you could access the account though. My accounts on two exchanges with small balance on it were probably deleted. I'd probably be pissed too if one day those altcoins that I once had there would pump 1000X ;D

Out of curiosity, what was the value in fiat of that 0.5BTC when you decided to just leave it there?

KYc is not related with user security its just because of implemention from different regions and its all about to have all data about customers which is going to hurt very badly to this anonymous crypto world in next few years I am not going to use these exchanges and sites those asking for this all because I love my privacy and never want to share my all data with any shady site.

It's look likes you are not oppening that account for long and forget about your balance for more years that came. They asked for mandatory kyc before , everyone receive an email about this and if you are actively using that platform I am sure you also receive yours .

You don't have any other choices if you want to get your balance you need fulfill the asking requirements so you can still have your BTC back, this is the reason why it's not secured to stored your crypto in exchange.

They started doing this a long time ago and they cannot do shit about it since they are already in compliance with KYC/AML regulations. Most exchanges also require you to submit documents that prove that you are indeed the same person who registered a long time ago so as to avoid having your account locked out. They have sent multiple emails regarding to the changes in the platform months prior but apparently people don't bother too much or don't have the time to check their emails associated to Bittrex and other exchanges.

Submit documents and be done with it if you want to still get that money. It's still worth $8000 today and too good to just let it slide.

Surely it was for security reasons since your account rested for long then suddenly it wakes up.

While your account is on hiatus, there are changes that happened on the way, especially on the verification part. Annoying but no choice but to comply.


You are the only one who can answer that question.

If you want to get that more than BTC0.5 on that account, then whining here won't help since the final decision is on their hands. You have no other choice but to follow what they said. But since you are not comfortable giving out your private information, then no other way to access your balance.

Think about on what will you do.

Even some other exchanges do this to people who have less funds. They ask for thier private details for verification.
My suggestion is. Just provide all they needed from you so that you can get your money. Because you won't have access without doing that. 0.5 btc is much to loose. But if your private doc worth more or you feel like 0.5 btc is too small for you. You can just give leave It there for them.

Even you have an access to your 2FA and email, it's alarming that suddenly an account will wake up after a long sleep.

To protect the account's fund, it will really require authentication since Bittrex doesn't know you. The amount involved is not that small so for safety measures, it should be processed properly.

No KYC then you can't have your account back. If you want your BTC0.5 then follow what they want as there's nothing you can do.

Not that much when you have left those coins but it's now entirely a big amount so you have to take it out. Fortunately your funds are still there yet they're asking you for KYC.

No other solution but you have to give them what they ask and they'll give your 0.5BTC have its withdrawal. With that amount, I'll be enforced to do it and won't come back to them after cash out.

@OP, Just as others have suggested, Your best bet right now would be to participate in their KYC exercise if you're interested/serious about getting your funds back in your possession. Like you, I was a Bittrex user backin 2017 - 2018 but stopped after they started demanding for KYC documents which I didn't participate in before I don't have anything to lose. In your case, You should. I don't see how they will allow you access the funds without submitting proof that you're the owner.

Avoid storing your funds in exchange. Third party wallet may risk your funds anytime. You have no assurance that you will get your money back when there are hacking incidents happen. The best thing you can do to secure your funds is to put it in a hard wallet. Bittrex is a good exchange but anytime, our funds is on risk. We can't blame them if there are incidents that happen to their exchange because they have no control at all. KYC process has been made difficulties for crypto users and even I will quit in an exchange that demands my identity. Because KYC for me is risking my identity.

Bittrex already ask for the KYC and there’s an update regarding this one so its not their fault anymore. Now, if you really want to get back that money then you have to provide all the legal documents since time changed already and you can’t bring it back because Bittrex are now under on many regulations. Bittrex is still a good exchange it just that, KYC is a big thing on this exchange and you have the option not to use Bittrex, its all yours.

KYC is also the reason why I totally leaving the Bittrex exchange. Their idea of imposing KYC on all registrants makes them losing their chances to compete with others. They leaving off behind new exchanges and soon to drop from the list if they don't work on their side.

Bittrex is very known before and I was there actively making a trade during the bullish season but as I check my account also, they are asking the same because my account hasn't been active for quite long and that KYC makes difficult for me to carry on.

The reason for them to block your access is in your first statement, you did not access the account for a very long time. I was forced to provide all the documents from a gambling website when i returned to my account after a couple of years and asked to provide my old deposit transaction ID even though i had 2 FA enabled and access to everything and you think that an exchange will not ask you to verify everything again that has around $8k USD.

How are you able to trade and withdraw the coins without going through KYC.

That's the only way to recover his funds, to submit his KYC as this exchange is already requiring KYC a long time ago.
I was using this before but when they started to ask for KYC, haven't used them since because I can trade with other exchanges without KYC.
I don't think there is other option for the OP to get his funds back other than submission of his KYC docs.

Well, it going to be a dilemma on your part, 0.5 BTC now is worth something, but how can you get it out when they require you to submit KYC documents which we all don't like? Perhaps the reason why they are asking for it because as you have admitted, you haven't used that account for many years, so there could be suspicions.

So it's really hard to get those funds unless you really submit the needed documents. Unless you are willing to default that 0.5 BTC in exchange of your privacy.

That could have been the very reason why your Bittrex account was blocked, the dormancy of your account for years. That is one of the usual reasons for complaints from people who have let their accounts go dormant for years and then suddenly came back. That long period of inactivity and suddenly a return is a trigger for exchanges to want to know whether the one who logs in is the same person who truly owns the account. That's a perfect recipe for them to require some KYC documents. It seems there is no other option but to comply with their request or let them have your funds. It is better to opt for complying. After all, you've already submitted those information when you have your account verified.

..that's a big yikes.

But yea, what's done is done. Expensive lesson #2 for you. Just make sure it actually doesn't happen again the 3rd time because if it would happen to you again I don't even know what to say lol.

Since must requiring KYC procedures I have also avoided using Bittrex, whereas in 2017-2018 Bittrex was one of the most popular
and trusted exchanges. But since Bittrex suddenly enforced KYC, hence many users have switched to other exchanges. Currently
the best exchange of choice is Binance, because KYC verification is only for withdrawals above 2 BTC.

There are many reasons for our Bittrex account being blocked, usually because we access the Bittrex website using a VPN,
or our account could be inactive for a long time. The last reason maybe we are including users whose countries are prohibited
from accessing the Bittrex website. Then the only way to prove we are the real owner of the account, by providing some KYC
documents requested by Bittrex. If we don't want to do that, we have to give up our remaining funds in the Bittrex account.

How can you refuse to provide personal document evidence when you have done KYC on your Bittrex account? isn't it not a problem anymore if you send your documents to prove that the one who opened the account is the original owner.
I am not worried if Bittrex asks for evidence, maybe there was suspicious activity before and because it hasn't been opened for a long time, or it could be that it's Bittrex policy to maintain the security of its user accounts.

You haven't used bittrex for few years this is the problem, your account is under suspicion and they decide to block access to your account. 0.5 BTC is a lot of money now, I think you need it right now, except to follow their request to get it back, there is no one and no way to advise you. Good luck to you!

Back in the day Bittrex had a problem getting a license in the state of New York, and had to migrate most of their operations to Europe which brought with it additional due diligence requirements.

I believe to this day they operate as 2 separate entities, and depending on where you are from have different KYC requirements, other than that in my experience the support and functionality have been satisfactory compared to similar centralized crypto exchanges of its kind...

When I saw your topic I thought Bittrex had involved in scam activities, your topic is misleading mate.

You have to give them what they wanted for verification, maybe the KYC you did was old method of verification, sometimes it happened like that. Also there's no harm in giving them those information of yours just for you to get back your money, Bittrex customer care support are fast in answering request, so there's no need to be bothered at that.

There are exchange that you can use without the need  to undergo to any kyc process , but there is a limit which is around 1 BTC per day. If you are not a big investors that 1 BTC daily is enough to make a trade daily. Just make sure you are also prepared to do kyc any time when they asked about it.

if you want to get back the btc that you have in there exchanges then there is nothing that you can do but to send private information to them. I have a bittrex account and I participated to their KYC way back 2018 because I cannot withdraw my funds there where I do not have any choice but to pass the verification in their KYC. If I'm not mistaken you need government issued ID then you will write in paper the current date and have a selfie with the paper and with the ID. If you want to get your btc then there is nothing that you can do but to pass the KYC but if you do not want to upload any private document then expect that you will never get your money. Bittrex is good in terms of security but what is not good to them is they are requiring their customers to get verified.

bittrex was once a popular exchange but its performance were overtaken by those new exchangers  .

 i havent heard any updates to them if the exchange is still stable or they have became bad but it was also your fault on why you leave your valueable items on an exchange for a long time  .

 anything can happen like hacks or the exchange can be shutdown , etc .  just do what they want , submit a kyc and see if what are their response . they ask that maybe because of your long time inactivity

What kind of a nonsense is that?, if someone hacked and has access to his bittrex account, email and somehow his phone which has 2FA then how exactly after doing KYC are they going to find out if the person that provided those documents is the real owner of that account or not?, so having access to trading account, email and 2FA should be enough to verify and these are just made up excuses to make their users complete KYC process so that they can probably sell those KYC information to make some extra money on the side and block withdrawals of those who are not going to do KYC and basically own whatever they have in their account so they're making money both ways.

I haven't used Bittrex but kyc wants to exchange these sites  at just one occasion Bittrex ruled the whole exchange market. Although their position has now come down a touch thanks to their mistakes then counting on their market price their position has risen to 3rd. Binance is during a good position in terms of investment and exchange there's no got to kyc here later and there's no fear of losing money the market must be researched and move forward.

When you do not login to your account for years it will have some troubles with it, I had 4 bitcoins in some weird unknown small website as well (that I didn't any spend money on thankfully) and years ago when I checked I saw the whole website gone, they probably had a period where they warned people that they are closing down and they allowed you to withdraw if they want to and I missed on that.

Bittrex is big enough that people still trade tens of millions of dollars there every single day, but just because you were not able to access your account all of those people should suddenly stop? Obviously nobody will stop just because you had a problem, this is a billion dollar company, one bad move will not kill or stop them from operating this well.

send them your data.  that's the only way you can get back that 0.5BTC you have there. you login there to see if its there because you needed it. you wouldn't be going back to bittrex if you didn't need that 0.5btc.

what is the difference anyway, you submitted to Chinese exchanges like Binance but you don't submit to bittrex? 
i have submitted data to bittrex. probably the reason why is kept using them still.

The only way to solve your issues is just follow the instruction on this exchange. Some exchange required to provide your data in order for you to use and do trades.. Mostly these days they require to provide kyc and bittrex is one of the old and popular exchange. I'm also a user of bittrex before and when I open my account from a long inactivity they require kyc so what I did I provide kyc just to use my account there since I have a small amount of btc left before.

I used to trade on Bittrex before and yeah I was also force to comply with their KYC update because I have no choice or else my funds will be gone, and I think that’s ok for me since I’m still safe and Bittrex still works good. So to solve your problem since its not a small money, better to comply with their KYC this is an update years ago I think, so you can’t do anything about it just accept it.

pretty straight and simple, accomplish the kyc requirements or dont. if the OP wants to get his funds back,  follow their new rules. bittrex has been asking kyc for so long already.
 and yes, the title is misleading. it is not the fault of bittrex here but the OP himself, who forgot his funds and didnt know that bittrex is already strict their kyc reqmts. so i guess, time to move on if he doesnt want to comply the bittrex rules.


he needs to understand that it is not bittrex's mistake why he cant get his funds back. lets see if the OP will return here saying he accomplished the reqmt and got his money back. and thats a decent amt of money these days. bittrex is not a fly-by-night exchange so sending your docs will not really give you trouble

It doesn't make worries to submit our KYC if we know that it won't fall into good hands. Bittrex has a good reputation and I believe that there is a reason why they are asking OP since he is not active for a long time. It was considered suspicious and they just want to verify the real owner of this account.


I hope OP could think that if he wants to get back his funds.

actually in this case they are his coins. simple verification and 8000 into his pocket.

he would need to be mentally ill or a criminal to not give proof.

if he is normal he claims the money and pays taxes keeping 4k maybe 5k.

why would he want to do this.

back to what I said mentally ill or a criminal.

kyc = exchange= legal = true.

no kyc = your exchange = not legal= true.

So basically the op is pretty delusional to think no Kyc.

I'm sure that there are a lot of traders like me who became frustrated when they implemented new rules and it was the KYC.  That time a lot of traders even me who switch to other exchange because the KYC of bittrex is a big yuck for me. I do not know if there is another way to regain or to withdraw the funds there without successfuly verification of the KYC. Bittrex is a good exchange because it doesn't have any hack issues but it is big NO for me if I will send to them my personal identity. I want an exchange that can protect both my identity and also my funds.

source: https://bittrex.com/discover/why-its-critical-to-verify-your-identity

I think that you should read this article and it's clearly stated the reason why bittrex was making KYC as a mandatory for all of users who have been using bittrex.

This to proves that if you are not a criminal who tried to access your account.

In that article is clearly stated the reason why KYC implementation is a must.

When you are using bittrex now and you must also comply with the US regulation

That's just some trick from the company to force his customer submitting KYC and you can't know what they do with your identity Why KYC is extremely dangerous – and useless (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5221497.msg53726647#msg53726647)

OP already said he was able to access his account with password with 2FA and haven't used the coins for few years, then there's nothing suspicious with his account. I don't find any reason where that can be considered as criminal activity.

even though in 2017-2018 Bittrex is a good exchange, they are a favorite of traders, including me,
but now they have a lot of problems about KYC and withdrawal even their support is very hard to help when a problem comes,
it's very unfortunate for Bittrex.

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5253547.msg54567100#msg54567100

https://imgur.com/a/c86smPQ

You can receive such crappy requests at any time and the exchange will block your account. I have not used centralized exchanges for a long time. Formally, any exchange can be accused of fraud and a criminal case against the management can be initiated.
And then users will wait, as clients of the Okex exchange do.

You don't have a choice really, with all these exchanges. To be fair, I think using CEXs like Bittrex, you have to expect at some point that they will want to KYC you. It's just a matter of time. Which is why I always say, if you have to use a platform that has KYC, you better make sure you pass and verify first before depositing anything!

Bittrex is no longer the same and they find ways to make it difficult traders right in their exchange. High fees and very few options to trade in Bittrex, besides that they require us to KYC and send them to be able to start trading there.
it is possible that your money is not lost, but you need to provide documentation of your information. Or you can hire someone to do KYC for you, I think this would be a more reasonable way because you will never again trade at Bittrex. :)

The support at Bittrex is bad, I had it too,
I lost my password and 2FA but they still don't respond to my complaints, and no help,
even though I have some Ethereum there and now it's gone.

Not for anything related to scam or anything like that, but I do suggest people to avoid bittrex for one simpler reason; there are better ones. If you want to do leverage and margin, there are better ones that does it for good, bitmex used to be highest of that but after the legal case I don't know what happens to them, if you want CEX to trade usdt and btc and other things to altcoins and back you can use binance which is much much better, if you want defi which bittrex is not, you can use uniswap with amazing look and simple system that removes all middleman from the work.

Basically bittrex is not something you should use because it is not the best at anything they do, they are very low level crypto exchange that doesn't need to even exist anymore.

Its hard for them to operate the exchange registered in the US. Laws here are extremely strict and thats why you are required to provide your personal ID. I know that Bittrex was one of the best exchange in the past but revulations have made them become weaker than ever. Thats why Binance rised and took over its place

I remeber when I first known trading, Bittrex was my absolute choice. I never thought that one day I would change an exchange. I had made a huge money back then. Still proud of being a client of this market

I'm a Bittrex user from 2017, and have never been disappointed with Bittrex services. But since getting to know Binance,
I decided not to use Bittrex anymore. Because Binance has complete trading features and also has a cheaper trading fee
than Bittrex. Regarding the problem you are experiencing, you should follow what procedure Bittrex wants. Instead of losing
your 0.5 BTC,  don't worry about your personal documents, because Bittrex is a reputable exchange.

I was a bittrex users because it disappointed me soo many time. No doubt bittrex is a very good exchange but its not a best exchange like binance, FTX, Coinbase, kucoin. That is why i avoid bitrex since 2018. I also suffer lots of problem i face lots of problem which was automatic password change, balance vanish that is why i don't suggest anyone to use bittrex. Its my Opinion my choice others can be different. You can loved it but my money my choice for best security can't be bittrex. Thank you.

Due to the AML5 Directive and the demand for appropriate documents the advantage for using bittrex is that they are located in Europe (Liechtenstein). Binance is located in Malta but according to https://www.coindesk.com/binance-is-not-under-our-jurisdiction-says-malta-regulator it is not clear, if they operate legally. Keep this in mind.

If you're still much interested about the funds in your account then move into action and ensure that your KYC is be completed which will enable you move your funds out of the exchnage. I sometimes head an account with them and the reasons i left them was becasue of their KYC sincerely becasue i hate giving out my real life identities to strangers. Advise: the funds in question is much 0.5bitoin, so, it will be good to move them out with your KYC.

That's the horrible part of any centralized exchanges, I can recall how they implemented the KYC framework to their client. I have a few bucks however they were gone from the point couldn't pass the KYC. Deliberately asked help through their customer support, but nothing happened.

At that moment, got disappointed and pick up binance as a good option, until happy with their service.

Yeah , if you want your money then simply do the KYC.

If you think it's not worth the risk as you are pretty protective about privacy then you should respect them for having that KYC policy and you better forget that 0.5 btc in your bittrex account, don't make thing get even more complicated... just obey the rules and understand the situation.
Bittrex have to ask for your KYC for a reason. They are complying with all Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) regulations,  that's it.

I remember some people also complain about their funds in bittrex, yes it is one of the top exchange before but because of their kyc and some support and missing funds issue it became a problem to them, I don't know if it is them but few years ago it is reported that the exchange is hacked, so I think they need to upgrade all their systems it become outdated and prone to many problems and attacks.