AscendEX review
AscendEX was a Singapore-based centralized crypto exchange, launched in 2018 as BitMax and renamed AscendEX in March 2021. Led by founder and CEO George Cao, it offered spot, margin (up to 25x) and futures trading across 250+ digital assets at its peak, plus staking, a token Launchpad, and card- and wire-based fiat on-ramps. It raised a $50 million Series B from Polychain Capital and Hack VC in June 2025. In December 2021 it lost $77.7 million to a hot-wallet hack, which it fully reimbursed. AscendEX never held dedicated exchange licenses in the US, UK or EU; it ceased all operations on July 1, 2026 after failing to secure EU MiCA authorization, freezing withdrawals under manual review with no recovery guarantee.
AscendEX key facts
- Website: ascendex.com
- Category: Centralized cryptocurrency exchange, ceased operations
- Founded: 2018, as BitMax; renamed AscendEX in March 2021
- Headquarters: Singapore
- Operational status: Ceased all operations on July 1, 2026
- Founder & CEO: George Cao
- Trading fees: 0.10% maker/taker base tier on major pairs, falling toward 0% at top VIP tiers
- Supported assets: 250+ digital assets across 320+ trading pairs at peak
- Notable security incident: $77.7M hot-wallet hack in December 2021, fully reimbursed to users
- CEO: George Cao
- FYI Score: 70.6/100 (ranked #277 of the crypto exchanges we track)
Trading fees
- Nine VIP tiers based on 30-day trading volume and ASD token holdings; base-tier spot fees were around 0.10% maker/taker on major pairs and 0.20% on altcoins, falling toward 0% at the highest tiers
- Separate margin trading fee schedule, with borrowing rates reported as low as roughly 3.65% annually at the lowest tier
- Card-based fiat purchases through Simplex carried an additional processing fee of about 3.5% with a $50 minimum, on top of standard trading fees
- Network withdrawal fees were charged per asset as a small fixed amount, separate from any third-party payment processor charges
Supported assets
- Listed as many as 250+ digital assets across 320+ trading pairs at its peak, per CoinMarketCap; other trackers recorded roughly 114 coins and 190+ spot pairs plus about 40 margin pairs at different points
- Native token ASD (formerly BTMX) used for fee discounts, staking rewards, and Launchpad allocation eligibility
- Spot markets ran alongside a smaller set of margin-eligible pairs rather than covering the full asset list
Products
- Spot trading across hundreds of pairs, plus margin trading with leverage up to 25x
- Perpetual futures and futures contracts alongside spot and margin
- Launchpad program for new token IEOs, plus staking and Earn programs including dedicated ASD staking pools
- Positioned post-rebrand as a hybrid CeFi/DeFi platform, layering wallet and yield features onto the core exchange
Security & regulation
- On December 11, 2021, attackers exploited a hardware-level vulnerability in third-party infrastructure to drain $77.7M from hot wallets across Ethereum (about $60M), BNB Smart Chain (about $9.2M) and Polygon (about $8.5M); cold storage was untouched and AscendEX pledged, and delivered, full reimbursement to affected users
- Rebuilt its hot-wallet infrastructure with new "Defense in Depth" controls and reissued deposit addresses after the breach
- Never held a dedicated exchange or broker license in the US, UK or EU; historically excluded US investors from registering, citing SEC rules against unregistered foreign exchanges soliciting US persons
- Failed to secure authorization under the EU's MiCA regime before its July 1, 2026 deadline; combined with a failed rescue financing transaction, this triggered a full shutdown of operations that same day
Fiat & payments
- Card-based fiat on-ramp via third-party processors Simplex and Banxa (Visa/Mastercard)
- Added a USD wire-transfer service for direct bank deposits and withdrawals in later years, though fiat rails remained narrower than large regulated exchanges
- No stated support for SEPA or other regional bank-transfer rails beyond USD wire transfer
- As of July 2026, all withdrawal requests, fiat and crypto, require manual review, with the company declining to guarantee timing or amount
Markets
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Who AscendEX is for
AscendEX cannot be used for new accounts, deposits, or trading; it ceased operations on July 1, 2026. Anyone with an existing balance can only file a withdrawal request for manual review, with no guarantee of full or timely fund recovery.
Pros
- Broad product range while operating: spot, margin up to 25x, futures, staking/Earn and a token Launchpad in one account
- Reimbursed users in full after its December 2021 hot-wallet hack rather than socializing the loss
- Attracted institutional capital as recently as June 2025, closing a $50M Series B led by Polychain Capital and Hack VC
- Broad asset coverage relative to mid-tier peers, with 250+ listed digital assets at its peak
Cons
- Ceased all operations on July 1, 2026 after losing its bid for EU MiCA authorization and failing to close a rescue liquidity transaction; the exchange is now fully defunct
- Automated withdrawals were suspended in July 2026; remaining requests go through manual review with no company commitment on timing or amount, and on-chain analyst ZachXBT flagged shrinking hot-wallet balances weeks before the shutdown
- Suffered a $77.7 million hot-wallet hack in December 2021 across three chains, traced to a hardware-level vulnerability in third-party infrastructure it relied on
- Never secured dedicated exchange licensing in the US, UK or EU and excluded US investors outright; its Trustpilot rating had fallen to about 1.2/5 across 200+ reviews by mid-2026 as withdrawal complaints mounted
AscendEX FAQ
Is AscendEX still operating?
No. AscendEX ceased all trading, deposit, staking and swap services on July 1, 2026, citing a failed strategic liquidity transaction and its inability to secure a license under the EU's MiCA regulation before that regime's deadline.
Can I withdraw my funds from AscendEX?
Only through manual review. Automated withdrawals were suspended in July 2026, and the company has said it cannot guarantee the timing or amount of any payout. Users can still submit withdrawal requests, update KYC details, and contact support for offboarding purposes.
Was AscendEX hacked?
Yes. On December 11, 2021, attackers stole $77.7 million from AscendEX's hot wallets across Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain and Polygon by exploiting a hardware-level vulnerability in third-party infrastructure. AscendEX said cold storage was unaffected and fully reimbursed impacted users at the time.
Was AscendEX regulated?
Not under a dedicated exchange license in any major jurisdiction. It historically excluded US investors due to a lack of SEC registration, was never FCA-authorised in the UK, and its failure to obtain an EU MiCA license in 2026 was one of the immediate causes of its shutdown.
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