About a month ago, my friend experienced a huge loss while transferring funds in crypto. He was trying to withdraw $50,000 USDT from his Binance spot wallet to his business partner's wallet on Bybit. His business partner provided him with a wallet address that specifically supports BEP2

When initiating the withdrawal, my friend accidentally selected the opBNB network instead of the BEP20 network. The transaction processed without any issues on Binance's side, but the USDT never appeared in the recipient's Bybit wallet.

The problem is that Bybit does not support the opBNB network for deposits. Since the funds are sent to an unsupported network, they are essentially stuck. Worse yet, such transactions are often irreversible in the blockchain world unless the receiving platform or network provider provides a rollback service—which is often costly and not guaranteed.

Efforts to Recover Money

My friend contacted Binance and Bybit customer support in hopes of getting his money back. Unfortunately, the following challenges arose:

  1. Binance's Limitation: Binance confirms that the transaction was successful on their end because they correctly processed the withdrawal to the selected network (opBNB).

  2. Bybit Limitations: Bybit explains that they cannot access funds sent to a network they do not support.

  3. Blockchain Reality: In most cases, funds sent to an incompatible network will be considered lost unless both platforms agree to cooperate to retrieve them—a process that can take time, effort, and fees, with no guarantee of success.

Important Lessons Learned

This unfortunate incident highlights important lessons for anyone trading cryptocurrencies:

  1. Double Check Wallet Address and Network: Always verify the network compatibility of the recipient's wallet address. Sending funds to the wrong network can result in irreparable losses.

  2. Understand supported networks: Make sure both the sending and receiving platforms support the selected network before initiating a transaction.

  3. Test small transactions first: For large amounts, start with a small transfer to confirm that the amount has been received correctly before proceeding with the full transfer.

  4. Seek expert advice: If unsure about the process, consult someone experienced in cryptocurrency trading to avoid costly mistakes.

Final Thoughts

This story is a painful reminder of how a single mistake in choosing the wrong network can lead to significant financial losses in the cryptocurrency space. While the technology offers incredible opportunities, it also requires meticulous attention to detail.