Multichain, a China-based cryptocurrency project, had gained attention as a platform specializing in connecting different blockchains. However, following the sudden disappearance of the company's founder and CEO Zhaojun, Multichain's management made the decision to halt the project's operations. This decision was announced through Multichain's official Twitter account following the mysterious disappearance that occurred in late May. #MultiChain #Zhaojun

The Multichain Project and its Goals:

Multichain served as a crypto bridge that enabled users to exchange digital tokens across multiple blockchains. The project aimed to facilitate seamless transactions and interoperability among different blockchains. Users could easily swap various cryptocurrencies and transfer them between different blockchains using the Multichain platform.

Zhaojun's Mysterious Disappearance:

However, Multichain's operations were disrupted by the mysterious disappearance of its founder Zhaojun. It was reported that Zhaojun had been detained by Chinese authorities in late May. Unfortunately, the reasons behind Zhaojun's arrest and the circumstances surrounding the incident remain unclear. This situation can be seen as an example of the regulatory challenges and risks that projects operating in the cryptocurrency sector may encounter.

The Closure Decision of Multichain and its Implications:

Multichain's management decided to halt the company's operations due to a significant fund outflow following the CEO's disappearance. The total locked value on the project's platform decreased by $139 million, indicating that investor trust and reputation suffered a serious blow. The shutdown of Multichain serves as a reminder of the volatile nature and uncertainties associated with the cryptocurrency sector.

Regulatory Challenges and the Importance of Investors:

Countries like China, which adopt a strict stance towards cryptocurrency activities, tend to pose regulatory challenges for crypto projects operating in various jurisdictions. Such events demonstrate the need for investors and users to exercise caution before participating in any cryptocurrency project or platform. As the cryptocurrency market continues to grow and regulatory frameworks are developed, the importance of transparency and compliance increases. Furthermore, the necessity for clear rules and measures to protect the interests of investors and users is emphasized.

In Summary:

The suspension of the Multichain project, coupled with the mysterious disappearance of its founder and the subsequent fund outflow, once again highlights the delicate nature of the cryptocurrency sector. This event encourages users and investors to be cautious and conduct thorough assessments before engaging with any cryptocurrency project. Considering the possibility of regulatory challenges and uncertainties, greater efforts are required to enhance transparency, compliance, and investor protection.

1. On May 21, 2023, Multichain CEO Zhaojun was taken away by the Chinese police from his home and has been out of contact with the global Multichain team ever since. The team contacted the MPC node operators and learned that their operational access keys to MPC node servers had been revoked. Furthermore, these MPC node servers, like all other ordinary servers, were actually running under Zhaojun's personal cloud server account. No member of the team has access to Zhaojun's personal cloud server account, so nobody can log on to these MPC servers.

2. Later, the team established contact with Zhaojun's family and learned that all of Zhaojun's computers, phones, hardware wallets, and mnemonic phrases were confiscated by the authorities. Since the inception of the project, all operational funds and investments from investors have been under Zhaojun's control. This also means that all the team's funds and access to the servers are with Zhaojun and the police.

3. Due to the lack of information about the case, the team could only maintain project operations to the best of their abilities through the remaining access on some non-MPC servers that hadn't been revoked yet. Per the lawyer's suggestions, the team has chosen to cooperate as much as possible with the demands of Zhaojun's family and adhere to the requirements of local laws and regulations, refraining from disclosing unauthorized information about the case to the public.

4. On May 30, in a responsible approach toward the community, the team released the news about Zhaojun's disappearance and informed the community about the technical issues currently faced.

5. On June 4, Zhaojun's family successfully logged into the cloud server platform using the historical information on his home computer. However, Zhaojun's family only allowed Multichain team engineers physical access to the home computer to fix technical issues with Router2 and Router5.

6. During this period, Zhaojun's family and the lawyer were in communication with the police. The team was not informed about the details of the case but was notified that Zhaojun would be released soon and was asked to continue maintaining the system and await further updates.

7. The Multichain protocol continued to operate as designed. The team made every effort with limited resources to sustain the operation of the Multichain protocol and resolve user issues as much as possible.

8. On July 7, user assets locked on the MPC addresses were transferred to unknown addresses abnormally. According to Zhaojun's sister, login information from an IP address in Kunming was found on the cloud server platform, along with a series of operations transferring funds from the MPC addresses.

9. On July 9, Zhaojun's sister transferred the remaining user assets in the router pool and subsequently notified the team and several project parties of this asset preservation action. The funds were transferred to EOA addresses controlled by Zhaojun's sister.

0x1eed63efba5f81d95bfe37d82c8e736b974f477b

0x6b6314f4f07c974600d872182dcde092c480e57b

10. On July 13, according to information provided by Zhaojun's family, the police took Zhaojun's sister into custody. Now, Zhaojun's sister is also out of contact. The status of the assets she has preserved is uncertain, so the team believes it is necessary to inform the community about all the known circumstances.

11. Due to the lack of alternative sources of information and corresponding operational funds, the team is forced to cease operations. If there are any further notifications and developments, the team will update the community accordingly.

12. The Multichain team does not have the access to Domain Account to redirect or bring down the frontend multichain.org

#multichain #Zhaojun $MULTI