Russian Crypto Exchange Unable to Process Withdrawals; Angry Users Try to Storm Offices

Approximately 50 users of Beribit, a Russian cryptocurrency exchange, recently tried to storm the company’s Moscow offices to demand their digital assets. Beribit’s management has attributed the delay in processing withdrawal requests to an audit initiated following the discovery of discrepancies in the exchange’s balance sheet.

Balance Sheet Discrepancies

About 50 users of the Russian cryptocurrency exchange Beribit recently tried to storm its Moscow City offices to demand their digital assets, believed to be worth $4 million (400 million rubles). During the chaos, some of the crypto exchange’s employees reportedly tried to escape but were stopped by an irate crowd.

A local report indicates that Beribit users have been unable to withdraw funds from the exchange for several days. While withdrawal requests remained “in processing,” the crypto exchange reportedly had no issues processing new deposits. In a statement released via Telegram on April 26, the crypto exchange’s new management team attributed the delays in processing withdrawal requests to the discovery of discrepancies in Beribit’s balance sheet.

This discovery led the management to initiate an audit of the crypto exchange’s financials.

“These necessary measures have led to a temporary backlog of requests for deposits and withdrawals. We make every effort to process them promptly. Clients who successfully pass the KYC/AML audit and verification will receive verified status and will be able to use their accounts without restrictions,” the crypto exchange said.

However, just a day after the management issued a reassuring statement, Beribit reportedly failed to pay back users as initially promised. Although the cryptocurrency exchange eventually reimbursed affected users, this reportedly seemed to only apply to Beribit users who had filed complaints with the police.

Some of the affected users have vowed to end their protest when they are fully reimbursed. Others said that leaving before the matter is resolved would mean “this issue will be closed.”

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