The official Chinese-language BitMart account, BitMart_zh, demanded that BitMart founder Sheldon Xia and Li Yi (Nancy Li) publicly answer questions about user funds. The statement gave them until August 19 and set out five demands concerning customer assets and the exchange’s obligations. The authors also demanded a verifiable plan to repay users.
Demand to Disclose Assets and Liabilities
According to the statement’s authors, users still cannot withdraw their funds, while exchange employees have not received their salaries or compensation for the past month.
They demanded the disclosure of assets, liabilities, and available reserves, as well as independently verifiable evidence that the exchange has enough funds to cover customer balances. They also demanded an explanation of who restricted withdrawals and when, and whether management knew about the problems while continuing to accept deposits.
By August 19, BitMart’s management must present a workable repayment plan covering its outstanding obligations, including details on remaining assets, the total amount owed, the repayment order and timeline, the oversight mechanism, and an independent audit.
If no verifiable response is provided, the authors intend to submit the materials to law enforcement agencies, regulators, lawyers, and media outlets in different jurisdictions. They also called on representatives of the crypto industry and industry media to pay attention to the situation.
Questions for Li Yi
A separate section of the statement was addressed to Li Yi. The authors referred to her posts showing luxury items and data on BitMart accounts allegedly linked to her, which they claim held tens of millions of dollars in assets before subsequent withdrawals. They demanded that Li Yi disclose the source of these funds, identify their owners, and explain any possible connection to customer assets, or provide evidence proving otherwise.
Xia Calls the Publication Rumors
Sheldon Xia said the same day that all the claims in the publication were rumors. He said he had documented the contents of the statement and would file a police report during the day, US time, while also sending X a lawyer’s letter demanding a technical and digital forensic examination.
Xia also said that employees’ assets do not have priority over customer funds and that everyone is in the same position.
Background
On July 26, BitMart announced that it would gradually wind down its operations. Starting on that date, the exchange suspended new registrations, deposits, and the placement of new orders.
The platform scheduled a complete halt to trading for August 26, with all operations set to end on January 31, 2027. In its initial announcement, BitMart said withdrawals would remain available.
Since late July, users have reported widespread problems withdrawing their funds. Wallets linked to the platform have also shown a sharp decline in balances during the same period.