10 Centralized Exchanges (CEXs) Frozen by Governments

Key Takeaways

• Governments have frozen or shut down multiple centralized crypto exchanges, including Binance, Coinbase, and FTX, over the years.
• Authorities acted for reasons such as money laundering, securities violations, unlicensed activity, fraud, or broader national policies, leaving millions of users with inaccessible funds.
• Cases span from China’s exchange bans in 2017 to Germany’s AML raids in 2024 and US lawsuits in 2023, showing global enforcement against centralized custody.
• Users can protect their assets best through non-custodial wallets, where private keys stay in personal control, offering independence from freezes, seizures, or sudden shutdowns of exchanges.

A sudden freeze on an exchange feels like the floor dropping from under your feet. You open the app, try to pull your balance, and the request hangs. Hours crawl by before an official update lands, stating that regulators have stepped in and all exchange operations have been halted. In that moment, the numbers on your screen turn into funds you can’t touch.

Events like this have happened many times across the global cryptocurrency industry. Centralized exchanges, or CEXs, allow people to trade digital assets through companies that hold custody of funds. That custody creates both convenience and risk. If regulators, courts, or law enforcement intervene, operations can freeze without warning.

The following list brings together cases where governments froze or halted exchanges, leaving millions of users searching for alternatives.

10 CEXs Frozen By Governments

Garantex – 2025

Garantex, a Russian-linked exchange, became the target of an international crackdown in March 2025. The US Department of Justice coordinated with authorities in Germany and Finland to seize its servers and freeze millions of dollars in assets. The US Secret Service even took over the exchange’s official web domains.

The exchange was accused of facilitating cybercrime by processing transactions for nefarious groups. Two of its operators were indicted on money-laundering charges. With its infrastructure confiscated and its access points under control of law enforcement, Garantex ceased operating.

Xchange.cash – 2024

German police carried out one of Europe’s largest crypto crackdowns in August 2024, shutting down 47 crypto exchanges. Xchange.cash, a peer-to-peer service used by nearly half a million customers, was among the closed exchanges. The platform allowed anonymous trades, which caught the attention of regulators seeking stricter anti-money-laundering and KYC enforcement.

The Federal Criminal Police Office, together with Frankfurt prosecutors, shut down the platform. Servers and transaction records were taken, while several of its associated crypto ATMs were removed.

Bankcomat – 2024

Bankcomat was another service halted in the same German investigation that targeted Xchange.cash. Like other unlicensed services, it facilitated cash-to-crypto trading without identity checks. Authorities considered these conditions risky, since they could support criminal activity.

The police removed the exchange’s infrastructure and froze its activity. With the same sweep of enforcement, Bankcomat and other services in the network disappeared overnight.

Binance – 2023

Binance, the world’s largest exchange by volume, faced simultaneous pressure in multiple jurisdictions during 2023. In the United Kingdom, the Financial Conduct Authority introduced new promotional rules. Binance responded by halting the onboarding of new UK users.

Meanwhile, in the United States, the Securities and Exchange Commission sued Binance and its founder, Changpeng Zhao. The SEC charged the company with operating as an unregistered exchange and misleading investors. It accused Binance of hiding the scale of its US activity while exposing clients to risks.

Coinbase – 2023

Coinbase, based in San Francisco, has long presented itself as the regulated face of crypto trading. Founded by Brian Armstrong and Fred Ehrsam, it became the first major crypto exchange listed on Nasdaq. Still, the SEC filed a lawsuit against the company in June 2023. Regulators claimed Coinbase operated as an unregistered exchange and broker.

The SEC complaint argued that Coinbase listed several crypto tokens considered securities. It also criticized Coinbase’s staking program, which pooled user assets to earn yield. The case pushed Coinbase to modify its services while it prepared for a lengthy court battle.

Kraken – 2023

Kraken, one of the oldest US-based exchanges, faced similar regulatory heat in 2023. The SEC charged the exchange with running an unregistered exchange, broker, dealer, and clearing agency. The regulator also highlighted concerns about customer funds being mixed with corporate accounts.

Earlier in the year, Kraken agreed to shut down its staking service for US clients as part of a settlement. The lawsuit, later in the year, added to its challenges, signaling a broader push by regulators to bring major platforms into compliance.

Huobi – 2017 and 2021

Huobi was co-founded by Leon Li, a former Oracle engineer. Under Li’s leadership, Huobi became one of China’s largest exchanges before regulators forced it to shut down domestic operations in 2017. The People’s Bank of China ordered all domestic exchanges to close. Huobi complied by winding down its trading services for local customers.

Four years later, the government introduced a blanket ban on crypto transactions. Huobi again responded by cutting off new registrations from mainland clients and closing existing accounts by year’s end. Each move showed how China tightened its grip on the sector.

BTC China – 2017

BTC China, also known as BTCC, was founded by Bobby Lee, brother of Litecoin creator Charlie Lee. Bobby Lee became a vocal advocate for Bitcoin in China and grew BTCC into one of the country’s most influential exchanges. In September 2017, regulators instructed it to shut down completely.

The closure followed Beijing’s broader campaign against crypto trading and initial coin offerings. BTC China stopped taking new accounts immediately and ended all trading within weeks. For many early adopters in China, this marked the end of their local exchange options.

FTX – 2022 to 2024

FTX grew at lightning speed from its founding in 2019. Based in the Bahamas with close ties to US markets, it was promoted by celebrities and sponsored major sports arenas. Its collapse in November 2022 shocked millions of customers.

Investigations revealed billions of dollars in customer deposits had been misused. The US Department of Justice indicted its founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, while the Commodity Futures Trading Commission filed civil charges. In 2024, a court ordered FTX and its sister company Alameda Research to pay billions in restitution.

Bittrex – 2019

Bittrex was founded in Seattle by Bill Shihara, Richie Lai, and Rami Kawach, all with backgrounds in cybersecurity at Microsoft and Amazon. It was once ranked among the top exchanges serving US customers. In 2019, Bittrex sought approval from New York’s Department of Financial Services for a BitLicense. The license would have allowed it to operate legally within the state.

The regulator denied the request, citing weaknesses in its anti-money-laundering practices and risk management systems. As a result, Bittrex was forced to exit the New York market. While the exchange continued elsewhere, the ruling showed how state-level oversight could limit operations.

Why Would A Government Freeze A Crypto Exchange

Governments intervene in exchanges when they see risks to financial stability or public trust. Several freezes follow allegations of money laundering or terrorist financing. Others result from suspected fraud or misuse of customer assets.

Licensing rules also play a role. When a company lacks required permits, regulators may act to stop operations. These interventions can protect investors, preserve financial transparency, and maintain compliance with existing laws.

Where Is The Safest Place To Store Crypto

The safety of cryptocurrency depends on who controls the private keys. Custodial exchanges, where the company holds the keys, can face regulatory freezes or shutdowns. Non-custodial wallets place control directly in the hands of the owner. These crypto wallets connect to the blockchain without intermediaries, giving full ownership and censorship resistance. Hardware wallets and open-source mobile wallets are common examples.

For long-term storage, many users prefer non-custodial options since no third party can restrict access to funds.

How to Read This List

The ten cases above don’t freeze for the same reason, and the difference matters if you’re trying to model your own custody risk. Some freezes are anti-money-laundering or sanctions actions where regulators target specific flows and the exchange itself survives; in those, withdrawal restrictions are typically lifted within weeks once compliance demands are met. Others are insolvency events dressed up as government action, where the freeze is really a court-supervised wind-down; in those, recoveries take years and rarely return more than 50–80% of customer balances. A third category is geopolitical — an exchange operating across a border is squeezed when one government decides it’s a strategic threat. Two practical takeaways for sizing exchange risk: never hold more on any single CEX than you’re willing to lose for 12+ months while a process plays out, and treat regulatory jurisdiction as a real input — an exchange domiciled where you don’t live introduces a layer of legal distance that matters the moment funds get held. Self-custody isn’t a panacea (you take on key-management risk), but it puts the freeze decision back in your hands.