Your coins on CEX may be at risk this bear season

[Majestic-milf]

 With the current market situation, where the bear pushes the dip further, chances are most centralized exchanges are being forced to go insolvent or even shut down due to inability to meet up with government taxes. And should this happen, your coins are at risk. Either you lose it all or get compensated in cases of lenient exchanges.
Some Exchanges may not be trusted as most times they are vulnerable to hacker attackers. Take the case of Bithumb, a South Korean crypto currency exchange that lost a million dollars worth of customers crypto in 2017.
 
Your privacy matters a lot always use a non- custodial wallet and save yourself the stress.

[Poker Player]

Good initiative but the problem I see is that the average user of this forum knows what you are saying, however there are many people who do not visit this forum who will innocently leave their funds in CEX.

Then comes the crying, when more than one leaves their life savings in an exchange or platform that goes bankrupt:

There's a lot of people now posting about suicide in there social media in relation with this Celsius collapse as expected. Celsius is licensed company which is the reason why noob investors will risk there life savings in there for a passive profit.

I just saw this article https://cryptobriefing.com/i-am-suicidal-celsius-customers-respond-to-firms-bankruptcy/?utm_source=feed&utm_medium=rss  shared on our group in telegram. This is same when Terra UST collapse before.

[Charles-Tim]

Even aside this present bear market, even during bull market, any unused coins should be transferred out of exchange to noncustodial wallet, being noncustodial means you have the full control of your coins.

Take the case of Bithumb, a South Korean crypto currency exchange that lost a million dollars worth of customers crypto in 2017.

That is even better. This thread's OP was last edited on January 02, 2021 but you can see many exchanges that were hacked right from 2011 to that time when it was updated last.

Hacked Exchanges since 2011

Your privacy matters a lot always use a segregated wallet and save yourself the stress.

What did you mean as segregated wallet? I think to be specific, people should be advised to use a noncustodial wallet. There is also a custodial wallet, which are not also advisable just like exchanges because if talking about privacy and full control, if exchanges are the fire, then custodial wallets are the hot frying pan.

[Upgrade00]

"Your coins on CEX may be at risk this bear season"
Actually, they are not 'your' coins if they are in a centralized exchange. The exchange holds the keys and the coins as well, you only trust them to let you spend it when you need it and that privilege can be revoked in a bull or bear market.
There is also the risk of privacy loss, with your personal details falling into the hands of hackers or being handed over to government agencies.

Your privacy matters a lot always use a segregated wallet and save yourself the stress.

What did you mean as segregated wallet?

I read it as segregated witness wallet. Probably cause that was the only way it made sense to me.
And you are right, best to be specific on using an open source, non-custodian wallet

[btc_angela]

With the current market situation, where the bear pushes the dip further, chances are most centralized exchanges are being forced to go insolvent or even shut down due to inability to meet up with government taxes. And should this happen, your coins are at risk. Either you lose it all or get compensated in cases of lenient exchanges.

I guess those who are force to go insolvent are exchanges that don't have the liquidity in the first place. But I will say that majority of top exchanges will have better protection although no one is safe from cyber threat.

Some Exchanges may not be trusted as most times they are vulnerable to hacker attackers. Take the case of Bithumb, a South Korean crypto currency exchange that lost a million dollars worth of customers crypto in 2017.

A lot of exchanges have been hack as well since Bithumb, lost big amount of money regardless of bear and bull market.

Your privacy matters a lot always use a non- custodial wallet and save yourself the stress.

Of course, we would like to protect our privacy, but there could be argument by now that some exchanges requires our KYC to be able to used their platform.

[NeuroticFish]

I think that people should read the topics made by o_e_l_e_o on this matter, I'll post them here in case you guys (and gals) have missed them.
Recent events should make everyone withdraw all their coins to their own wallets
Recent events should make you withdraw all your coins to your own wallet: Part 2

Shortly, my opinion:
Even though it is being said on a daily basis that "not your keys, not your coins", people keep missing the point and losing more and more money. With bitcoin becoming more and more mainstream, with every minute passing by it's more and more important to keep your funds under your own custody, i.e. be your own bank. And don't give to the others, no matter what they promise. And if you're not knowledgeable enough to keep them safe, buy a hardware wallet.

[Leviathan.007]

In my own idea, It's not only about the bearish market situation but in any situation, your funds are in danger whenever you keep your assets where you don't have direct access to your seeds and private keys and this case got many victims already. Because they can suspend your transaction and withdrawals for any reason they want and they can change their rules also the risk because higher when the prices go down in the market because the other option for them can be a declaration of bankruptcy so they won't give the coins hack ever.

[dimonstration]

Not your your key not your coins and this quote is the forum main tag line. 

Anyway I doubt huge CEX will be affected by this like for example Binance, They are in crypto business since the crypto marketcap was below billion dollars. They are the one who gain the most on this bull market so they have enough funds to withstand any bear market how dip it was unless the price dip near zero which is obviously not profitable anymore to any business here in crypto.

[sheenshane]

Not your your key not your coins and this quote is the forum main tag line.  

As always and considering it as a golden rule, IMO.  I also repeatedly say this to anyone who needs advice.

With the current market situation, where the bear pushes the dip further, chances are most centralized exchanges are being forced to go insolvent or even shut down due to inability to meet up with government taxes. And should this happen, your coins are at risk. Either you lose it all or get compensated in cases of lenient exchanges.

Though there are exchange that has a feature of SAFU like Binance which is your fund is safe, still considering it not safe to store your coins there is a long period of time but if you're in trading, I'd like you to choose them than the unknown exchange platform which is commonly considered to be bankrupt due to what you've said.

Some Exchanges may not be trusted as most times they are vulnerable to hacker attackers. Take the case of Bithumb, a South Korean crypto currency exchange that lost a million dollars worth of customers crypto in 2017.

There's nothing you can do if you're a trader, just take a risk, and picking a good exchange was your first step there.
After the trading session just transfers your coin out into your non-custodial wallet, you're safe.

Your privacy matters a lot always use a non-custodial wallet and save yourself the stress.

I tend to agree and you're indeed right.

[blue_hurricanger]

I think I know the point anyone here is talking about since the cases of Celsius filled for bankruptcy recently along with Voyager, 3AC shook the faith in CEX. Freeze the asset, stop the withdrawal.
But to be fair, the CEX exchanges are a bit more resistant than those loan companies. Because those loan companies boom thanks to the bull market last year. They can pay back the high rate they promise but once the bull market is gone, you know what is coming. Even in the Mt.Gox case, people can still get their money back abit after a very long time of waiting so if you keep your asset at Binance and not fall for lending bullshit, you're not at risk of losing all of your assets.

[Silberman]

Not your your key not your coins and this quote is the forum main tag line. 

Anyway I doubt huge CEX will be affected by this like for example Binance, They are in crypto business since the crypto marketcap was below billion dollars. They are the one who gain the most on this bull market so they have enough funds to withstand any bear market how dip it was unless the price dip near zero which is obviously not profitable anymore to any business here in crypto.

This is a very common phrase in the forum and yet it is still one of the most powerful and important ones, Satoshi designed bitcoin with the idea of allowing every single person to be their own bank, and while some users have decided to abandon that responsibility by letting a CEX to take on that role that phrase still holds true, letting someone else manage your coins for a long period of time is a mistake that could come back to haunt us at some point, and when we have so many exchanges out there and new regulations appearing which forces them to pay more taxes then at some point they could become insolvent and in that scenario the chances you will recover your coins are not very high.

[boyptc]

Not only during the bear markets but all of the time.

That's why it's spreading on the forum that if you don't hold the keys, then you're not holding your funds in any exchange because it will never be.

Everyone not just the newbies but also those that have been long in the market to become vigilant. From the hacks, to the shutting down of exchanges due to several reasons and most of it are the same about can't tackle the bear market with their responsibilities, obligations and liabilities.

[DVlog]

That is why I always prefer to keep my balance in my non-custodial wallets. Though I think maintaining assets in an exchange like binance, ftx, and kucoin is safe, using a personal wallet is the best option. You do not need to worry about any exchange hack or suspicious activity from the exchange itself. But for a low-quality exchange, I won't even deposit my funds to buy any token.

[o_e_l_e_o]

Let me fix that title for you OP:

Coins on a CEX are at risk.

Any coin not in your own wallet is at risk at all times. It doesn't matter if it is on some two bit exchange no one has heard of or on Binance or Coinbase, on some lending platform like Celsius or BlockFi, or in a web wallet. If it's not in your wallet, not only is it a risk, it is not even yours. Every one of these platforms, as we are now discovering with Coinbase's recent SEC filings and with Celsius and Voyager going bankrupt, treat coins deposited from users as belonging to the platform. You give up all rights and claims of ownership over those coins as soon as you deposit them, and they can and will be used by the platform to pay off their debts and liabilities.

Good initiative but the problem I see is that the average user of this forum knows what you are saying

I have been warning people about platforms like Celsius for years, and every time I do, there are always multiple users in the thread saying variations of "Well, I use them and have had no problems" or "They are big and reputable therefore they are safe". There's even a post in this very thread saying exactly that about Binance.

Though there are exchange that has a feature of SAFU like Binance which is your fund is safe

A marketing ploy, nothing more.

[NeuroticFish]

Though there are exchange that has a feature of SAFU like Binance which is your fund is safe

Imho the more correct way would be "your funds are claimed to be safe".
With so much SAFU around, this didn't help the Nigerians who got the funds frozen by Binance without prior notice, isn't it?
Again: don't believe everything that those businesses are promising (or claiming). It's just commercial. Think it over very good and never forget: not your keys, not your coins.

[Upgrade00]

<snip>

Let me fix that title for you OP:

This reminded me that one can actually change the title that appears when they reply to a thread, and if quoted, it carries that title. So, I directly fixed it myself  

I have been warning people about platforms like Celsius for years, and every time I do, there are always multiple users in the thread saying variations of "Well, I use them and have had no problems" or "They are big and reputable therefore they are safe". There's even a post in this very thread saying exactly that about Binance.

This is a rationalization many (including experienced users who have seen first hand hacks and data leaks from CEX) use to make it understandable to use centralized platforms. And with some of those platforms integrating supposed non custodian wallets onto their system, it further gave the false sense of autonomy.

[cabron]

Though there are exchange that has a feature of SAFU like Binance which is your fund is safe

A marketing ploy, nothing more.

The ploy still works for me actually and probably for some of us too. We are very much aware of the "Not my keys,  not my coins" but because we trade so much even in the bear market we leave them in exchanges to buy and sell when the price is  right. I could have withdraw the $500  from one account  if only withdraw fee for stablecoin will be cheaper.

I think its find to leave few money on the exchange as long as its something you can afford to lose in case the exchange suddenly suspends withdrawal. But staking them on Defi or lending platforms is riskier.

[o_e_l_e_o]

Again: don't believe everything that those businesses are promising (or claiming). It's just commercial.

Exactly this. Take Celsius as a prime example of this. They ran with the slogan "Unbank yourself", they claimed all over their website and social media that your coins were safe, that they were collateralized, that they were stored securely, etc. And then the bankruptcy proceedings go ahead and it turns out they were handing out uncollateralized loans, and spending the little collateral they did have to take out more loans themselves. Incredibly risky and completely unprofessional. Or Coinbase as another example. Say on Twitter how all their users' coins are secure and safe if anything should happen, but then file legal documents saying that users are unsecured creditors and their coins will be used to pay off any bankruptcy proceedings, leaving the users with nothing.

These companies say anything they like on social media to attract customers. Almost none of it is accurate. Your coins are at risk.

I could have withdraw the $500  from one account  if only withdraw fee for stablecoin will be cheaper.

Then that's an argument to find an exchange which doesn't charge outright theft levels of withdrawal fees to force you to only rarely withdraw. Binance is the worst for this.

[abel1337]

With the current market situation, where the bear pushes the dip further, chances are most centralized exchanges are being forced to go insolvent or even shut down due to inability to meet up with government taxes. And should this happen, your coins are at risk. Either you lose it all or get compensated in cases of lenient exchanges.
Some Exchanges may not be trusted as most times they are vulnerable to hacker attackers. Take the case of Bithumb, a South Korean crypto currency exchange that lost a million dollars worth of customers crypto in 2017.
 
Your privacy matters a lot always use a non- custodial wallet and save yourself the stress.

Bear market shred off weak companies even exchanges can go bankrupt or force closures due to not sustaining it well during bear season.

Do you guys remembered C-CEX? It closed and says that they are "hacked" which is an old fashion way to scam people. Users who have funds and asset there haven't been compensated, Basically a scam. Weak exchanges can be on the same direction, Time can tell when would they close. Actually there are exchanges now that are filling up for bankruptcy, one of them is Voyager Digital. Obviously they aren't ready for this kind of market or they can't sustain their platform features that's why they filled for bankruptcy.

Store your coins in you wallet and avoid using weak or relatively new exchanges. Exchanges are becoming popular due to it's survivability in the market.

[ChrisPop]

This is one the big problems when dealing with unregulated exchanges. You don't know how and if they have proper capital and risk management procedures in place. I don't think exchanges have much overhead costs. I think they are pretty profitable, especially the big ones so with a bit of dilligence in their finance department they shouldn't have any problems paying government taxes which I suppose are not that hefty taking into account that many of them have set their headquarters in fiscal paradises.