Bittrex Hit With SEC Lawsuit After Deciding to Leave US

The SEC also alleged that six tokens available on Bittrex are securities

April 17, 2023 12:25 pm

Sharaf Maksumov/Shuttertock modified by Blockworks

Weeks after announcing plans to permanently exit the US, Bittrex was hit with several charges from the SEC Monday.

The SEC alleged that six tokens available on Bittrex are securities, including Algorand’s native ALGO and Dash token, the complaint noted.

The SEC also claimed that the exchange operated as an “unregistered exchange, broker and clearing agency,” according to a statement from the agency. Bittrex’s former CEO William Shihara and international affiliate Bittrex Global GmbH are also facing charges.

Newsletter

Subscribe to The Breakdown

Bittrex, which revealed it would be winding down US operations earlier this month, had been tipped off in March that the SEC would proceed with a lawsuit, according to reports.

In a statement earlier this month, Bittrex said it was closing down its US business because “it’s just not viable for us to continue to operate in the current U.S. regulatory and economic environment.”

SEC head Gary Gensler countered that there has been enough regulatory clarity around the crypto and exchange space for businesses to operate within the law.

“Today’s action, yet again, makes plain that the crypto markets suffer from a lack of regulatory compliance, not a lack of regulatory clarity,” Gensler said in the statement. “Bittrex, as alleged, failed to register and comply with U.S. securities laws as an exchange, broker-dealer, and clearing agency. Cosmetic alterations did nothing to change the underlying economic realities of the offerings and Bittrex’s conduct.”

US Bittrex customers have until April 24 to facilitate fiat withdrawals via wire transfer and until April 27 to withdraw via ACH. Trading closed on the platform last week on April 14.

If users miss the above deadlines to pull funds off the platform, remaining assets “may be unavailable for an extended period,” Bittrex said.

Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

The Breakdown: Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily.
0xResearch: Alpha in your inbox. Think like an analyst.

Tags

Newsletter

The Breakdown

Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily, with Byron Gilliam.

Upcoming Events

Digital Asset Summit 2026

Javits Center North | 445 11th Ave

Tues - Thurs, March 24 - 26, 2026

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

buy tickets learn more

recent research

Research

ERC 8004: Introducing Trust for AI Agents

ERC 8004 introduces a new trust layer for AI agents by standardizing onchain identity, reputation, and validation. As agents begin handling capital and coordinating autonomously, trust becomes the key constraint to broader adoption. The rollout mirrors the early x402 narrative, where adoption lagged the initial launch until major integrations and a viral use case pulled attention into the ecosystem. If ERC 8004 follows a similar path, downstream infrastructure tied to the standard could see outsized benefit as the narrative gains traction. The primary beneficiaries are likely to be agent frameworks and launchpads at the distribution layer, agent to agent coordination platforms that enable delegation and payments, and validation providers that offer stronger security and execution guarantees.

by Kunal Doshi