Account blocking and payout restrictions involving crypto assets
If your assets and civil liberties are affected by a freeze, you do not have to accept this without doing anything. You can use the following form to describe your concerns in a structured manner. The information is for an initial preliminary check and does not constitute a mandate.
In the final step, you can choose to book a free orientation meeting with a member of the firm's staff or an initial consultation with the firm's owner for a fee.
Payouts blocked, trading blocked, guarantees of origin requested
Account blocking usually catches users completely unprepared. When opening the app, an error message suddenly appears, withdrawals can no longer be made and access to your own balance is blocked.
Many then try to clarify the situation, for example by uploading requested documents or contacting support. However, there is often no concrete feedback or it is limited to standardized messages. At this point, a feeling of powerlessness often arises.
Account blocking is not an isolated issue in the crypto asset sector. It affects both private investors and companies. They are often carried out without concrete justification and without a recognizable time frame.
Typical reasons for account blocking and payout restrictions
Crypto platforms are subject to extensive regulatory obligations. Accounts are therefore often blocked for formal or preventative reasons, including
- Ongoing or subsequent KYC and identity checks
- Suspicion of transactions relevant to money laundering law
- Missing or insufficient proof of the origin of the funds (proof of funds)
- Unusual or automatically detected transaction patterns
- Violations of the platform's GTC
- Internal compliance checks or external information from payment service providers
- It is often not clear to users what specific accusation is being made and how long the blocking is supposed to last.
In our experience, the platforms, some of which are understaffed in view of the increasingly complex legal requirements, quickly resort to freezing assets and temporarily deactivating accounts in cases of doubt.
When legal support can be useful
Legal action can be particularly appropriate and decisive if platforms do not respond, refuse to provide information or maintain blocks over a longer period of time.
The aim is always a factual, solution-oriented clarification, not escalation for its own sake. For this reason, despite your understandable annoyance, you should not communicate rudely or insultingly with the customer service of the platform concerned either before or during any action taken by our law firm. Rather, it is helpful to take a professional approach with legal arguments.
This includes in particular the preparation of requested proof-of-funds / proof-of-origin documentation and the enforcement of claims against platforms and banks.
We accompany our clients throughout the entire process until the assets are released and provide them with reliable and personal support.
Typical procedure
The specific procedure depends on the individual case. In practice, however, the following procedure is often used:
- Initial legal classification of the account/account blocking and previous communication
- Structured contact with the platform from a legal perspective
- Clarification and processing of open evidence and information
- Time-bound request for unblocking or payment
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Further legal steps if there is no response. These may include
- A further out-of-court demand letter from a lawyer;
- Contacting the Financial Supervisory Authority/Ombudsman (depending on the country of domicile of the platform concerned)
- if unavoidable: a legal dispute, in urgent cases possibly combined with an application for an interim injunction.
In our experience, many cases can be settled out of court if the communication is targeted and legally sound.
More information on individual platforms and banks
Account suspensions occur on numerous international platforms. Regardless of the platform in question, the underlying problems are often similar, particularly in the interplay between compliance requirements, automated checks and limited individual communication. Nevertheless, there are differences in the corporate structure, the frequency of problems that occur and the way customers are dealt with.
Simply click on the name of the platform concerned to find out more:
We also advise traditional banks and other exchanges and platforms. For more information, click here:
Information:
In the case of crypto exchanges, crypto assets are generally not held in custody by the user. The private keys are held by the platform, while the user only has a contractual claim against the platform for the transfer or payout of the corresponding holdings.
Against this background, it should be noted that the actual availability of the holdings/assets depends on the platform's internal review and approval processes.