You cannot buy cryptocurrency on Bittrex, because Bittrex stopped trading. Bittrex Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware on 8 May 2023, case number 23-10598, after announcing the wind-down of its US platform at the end of April that year.
The Securities and Exchange Commission had charged the company and co-founder William Shihara on 17 April 2023 with operating an unregistered exchange, broker and clearing agency.
The wind-down, in order
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 31 March 2023 | US wind-down announced, effective 30 April |
| 17 April 2023 | SEC charges filed against Bittrex and William Shihara |
| 30 April 2023 | US platform stops serving customers |
| 8 May 2023 | Chapter 11 filing in Delaware, case 23-10598 |
| 15 June 2023 | Court authorises customer withdrawals |
| 10 August 2023 | SEC settlement reached inside the bankruptcy |
| 31 August 2023 | Deadline for US customers to file proofs of claim |
| 4 December 2023 | Bittrex Global ends trading for remaining users |
| 23 April 2024 | Liechtenstein and Bermuda entities enter liquidation |
The two companies were separate
Bittrex Inc. covered US customers and went through Delaware bankruptcy. Bittrex Global served everyone else from Bermuda and Liechtenstein, and its wind-down ran on its own timetable. If you are trying to work out where your money went, the first question is which of the two held your account.
What happens if you log in today
bittrex.com redirects to bittrexglobal.com, which displays a wind-down notice. A login still exists, and its only function is withdrawals. Dollar balances were converted to USDT on a 1 to 1 basis so former customers could move value off the platform.
Trading is not available, and deposits are not accepted. Any page that offers to trade or deposit on a Bittrex domain is not operated by the company, whatever the design suggests.
That single rule covers most of the risk left in this story. A brand with a wind-down notice is an attractive thing to imitate, and the impersonations are the part that can still cost you money.
If you still hold an account, type the address into the browser yourself rather than following a link from an email, a search advertisement or a direct message. Login credentials and two-factor codes are the two things a clone site asks for first.
If you still had a balance
The deadline to file a US proof of claim was 31 August 2023, and it has passed. For customers who met it, the plan provided for 100% in-kind cryptocurrency distributions, meaning the same coins rather than a cash equivalent.
Participation was low. Fewer than 36,000 of roughly 1.6 million US customers filed claims, which is why the deadline matters more than the headline recovery rate. A late claim normally requires a court to accept that there was excusable neglect, which is a high bar and not a routine fix.
The claims agent is Omni Agent Solutions, and the underlying docket can be searched on PACER under case 23-10598. Those two sources will tell you more about your own position than any article can.
Bittrex Global customers went through a different process again, under Bermuda and Liechtenstein liquidation rather than the Delaware case, and a Bermuda Court of Appeal ruling in March 2026 continued that process rather than ending it.
Choosing a venue that still trades
Since the platform this topic used to describe is closed, the practical question is how to pick one that is open. Four checks do most of the work.
| Check | Why it decides your outcome |
|---|---|
| Regulator and licence number | Determines your complaint route and any compensation scheme |
| Client fund segregation | Keeps customer money apart from company money |
| Withdrawal record and complaints | Shows whether exits actually work under stress |
| Total cost per purchase | Spread plus fee is the real price, not the advertised rate |
Then match the venue to the job. A regulated broker in your own jurisdiction is the right home for money you intend to convert back into local currency, while self-custody suits assets you do not intend to sell for years. The two decisions are separate, and Bittrex is a reminder that the custody decision outlives the trading one.
How to verify this coverage
The filing date, case number and claim deadline come from the Delaware bankruptcy record, which is searchable on PACER and mirrored by the claims agent. The SEC charge and its settlement are published enforcement documents. The trading halt for international users and the liquidation of the Bittrex Global entities are recorded in the company's own wind-down notices and in the Bermuda proceedings. Before relying on any of it, open the docket or the claims agent page directly, because dates in secondary coverage drift and the court record does not.
This article is general information, not investment, legal or tax advice. Cryptocurrency held on an exchange can be lost if that exchange fails, and regulatory status changes over time.