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If an investment firm holding your cryptocurrency fails, start with the official insolvency or liquidation process—not a private “recovery” service. Identify the exact legal entity and appointed administrator or trustee, preserve your records, submit the claim the case requires, and verify separately whether any compensation scheme covers the firm and activity. You may receive specific coins, cash, a proportional distribution, compensation, or nothing; the result depends on the contract, custody structure, governing law and estate assets.

What to do first when an investment firm fails

Do not assume that a trading-app brand, its parent company and the company that legally held your assets are the same entity. A group can contain separate operating, custody and payment companies, each with different creditors and records. Your first objective is to match your account to the legal entity named in a court filing, regulator notice, administrator appointment or official claims-agent notice.

Once you have the correct case, record the case number, the appointment date, the name and contact details of the administrator, trustee, liquidator or receiver, and every stated deadline. Insolvency procedures are not interchangeable: a special administration, ordinary liquidation, bankruptcy, receivership and a U.S. Securities Investor Protection Act (SIPA) liquidation can require different forms and produce different rights.

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Use only contact details published by a regulator, court, appointed office or official case website. A message that uses the firm’s logo or knows your account number is not proof that it came from the estate.

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Step 1: Confirm the legal entity and the proceeding

Find the entity that contracted with you

Check your agreement, account statements, deposit confirmations, terms of service and payment records for the company’s registered name. Note which entity accepted fiat, which entity recorded crypto balances, and whether a separate custodian or lender was involved. Save copies because a website or customer portal may later disappear.

Search the relevant regulator’s register, court docket and insolvency notices for that exact name. The official notice should identify the appointed office and explain how customers or creditors are to communicate. If an administrator has been appointed, ask that office which entity’s books contain your account and whether another group company is involved.

Read the case notice for the right form

In a U.S. bankruptcy, a proof of claim is a written statement asserting a right to payment and normally includes supporting documents. In a U.S. SIPA liquidation, the court guidance says the trustee normally supplies a customer claim form and instructions; customers file with the trustee rather than using an ordinary bankruptcy proof-of-claim route. Follow the notice for the actual case.

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For UK compulsory liquidation or bankruptcy, the Insolvency Service says the official receiver or insolvency practitioner should contact known creditors and request a proof of debt. If nobody has contacted you, use official registers and notices to identify the office managing the case and ask how to register as a creditor.

Write down deadlines and required identity checks

Make a dated case log. Include the bar date or claim deadline, the permitted submission method, accepted file formats, valuation date, currency or token units requested, identity-verification steps and an address for changing your contact details. Missing a deadline can limit participation or require a separate application, depending on the proceeding.

Step 2: Preserve evidence before access disappears

Download your account data while access remains available. Do not bypass security controls, scrape another person’s account or attempt to move assets from a wallet controlled by the estate. Keep an unchanged copy of every file and a separate working copy for calculations.

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Records that usually establish the account and balance

  • Statements showing balances at the relevant failure or appointment date, deposits, withdrawals, trades, interest, fees and transfers between products.
  • Bank or card records for funding and withdrawals, including dates, amounts, reference fields and the name of the recipient.
  • Account-opening and identity records that connect you to the customer number, email address and legal contracting party.
  • Contracts and terms covering custody, lending, staking, margin, collateral, rehypothecation, omnibus wallets, withdrawal limits and dispute resolution.
  • Wallet addresses, transaction hashes, blockchain network, token symbol, quantity and screenshots or exports showing the balance. Keep the original export and note when it was generated.
  • Emails, account notices, support tickets, complaint references, withdrawal requests and any prior settlement or claim correspondence.
  • Every notice from the administrator, trustee or claims agent, plus proof of submission, confirmation numbers and later decisions.

Digital traces can help an investigation, but they are not a reason to disclose secrets

Trustee guidance from the Australian Financial Security Authority identifies emails, mobile applications, QR codes, recovery seeds, browsing history and hardware as possible evidence sources in an estate investigation. It also notes that crypto-analysis tools can trace activity, while human cooperation and context are needed to interpret it.

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That guidance is for investigators locating estate assets. It does not mean you should send a recovery seed or private key to a tracing company. Never disclose a seed phrase, private key, password, two-factor authentication code or remote-control access to an unsolicited contact. A seed phrase that protects a self-custody wallet can transfer control of the wallet; it is not a normal proof-of-claim document.

Build a transaction schedule

For each deposit, withdrawal and trade, record the date and time zone, asset, quantity, network, transaction ID, destination or source address, fiat value if shown, and the statement on which it appears. Mark transactions you cannot reconcile. Explain discrepancies rather than silently deleting them; an administrator may have exchange or blockchain records that reveal a different sequence.

Step 3: Determine what legal claim is being assessed

Ask the appointed office to state, in writing, how it is classifying your position and which contract or records support that classification. The key question is whether you are claiming identifiable property, an interest in a pooled customer fund, or repayment of a debt.

Segregated or identifiable custody property

If the firm held particular assets for customers in a way recognized by the contract and applicable law, you may assert a right to those assets or to a share of a segregated pool. The administrator still has to reconcile records, identify competing claims and obtain any required court approval. A custody label in an app does not by itself decide ownership.

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Debt or unsecured creditor claim

If the firm could use, lend or commingle the assets, or if the contract promised repayment rather than custody, the estate may treat your balance as a debt. In some U.S. crypto bankruptcies, customers have been at risk of being treated as unsecured creditors. That is not a universal rule: the contract, records, custody structure, applicable law and court decisions control the classification in the particular case.

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Why the classification changes the result

A property claim can lead to delivery of specific crypto or an in-kind distribution if the assets are located and the court permits it. A debt claim generally competes with other claims and may be paid in cash or another court-approved form. Either route can produce a partial payment or no payment if the estate lacks enough assets.

A U.S. Treasury analysis has noted that crypto custody may not receive the same treatment as traditional financial custody and that bankruptcy courts may treat customers as unsecured creditors in some settings. In the European Union, MiCA Article 75 sets recordkeeping and segregation requirements for covered crypto-asset custody services, including legal segregation in accordance with applicable law. Those requirements apply only within their scope and do not automatically determine a customer’s claim in every country or proceeding.

Which claim route applies?

Route Decision maker Typical evidence Possible outcome Deadline and cost
Custody or property claim Administrator, trustee and, where required, the court Custody contract, segregation records, account statements, wallet and transaction evidence Specific crypto, a share of a customer pool, cash after liquidation, or rejection Use the case notice; deadline and any court fee are case-specific
Ordinary bankruptcy or creditor proof Trustee, administrator or liquidator, subject to court review Written claim, balance calculation, contracts, statements and payment records Proportional distribution from estate assets, later amendment, or no recovery Use the published bar date and filing channel; do not assume another proceeding’s form works
U.S. SIPA customer claim SIPA trustee and the bankruptcy court Trustee’s customer claim form, account records and requested identity documents Customer-property or cash distribution under the SIPA process, subject to the trustee’s determination Follow the trustee’s supplied instructions and deadline
Compensation claim The applicable statutory scheme or compensation administrator Proof of eligible firm, regulated activity, client status and shortfall Compensation up to the scheme’s limit, or rejection Eligibility, limits and deadlines vary by scheme and activity

The routes are not interchangeable. An administrator may require a creditor proof even when you believe you own the coins, while a SIPA trustee may issue a separate customer form. Submit the document the named office requests and preserve your argument about ownership in the supporting explanation.

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Step 4: Submit, document and monitor the claim

  1. Use the official channel. Submit through the portal, form, claims agent or postal address named in the case notice. Do not rely on an address supplied by an unsolicited caller.
  2. State the amount precisely. Give each asset and unit, the requested valuation date and any fiat equivalent required by the form. Explain whether the figure is a statement balance, a reconciled calculation or an estimate.
  3. Attach readable evidence. Include the documents the instructions request and label them so the reviewer can match each figure to a statement, transfer or transaction ID. Redact unrelated personal data, but do not remove information needed to identify the account.
  4. Complete identity checks carefully. Use only the verification method described by the official office. If a request appears unusual, confirm it through a telephone number or website obtained independently from the regulator or court.
  5. Save the submission record. Keep the completed form, attachments, timestamp, confirmation number and delivery receipt. A screenshot alone may not prove successful transmission if the portal reports an error.
  6. Track decisions and amendments. Record requests for more information, admission or rejection notices, objections and response dates. Do not file duplicate claims or change the amount without following the case’s amendment procedure.
  7. Update your contact details. Tell the office promptly if your postal address, email or bank details change, using the approved method. Future notices can be sent only to the details in the estate’s records.

Submitting a claim does not guarantee payment. It places your position into the process so the office can investigate, rank and, where funds permit, distribute it.

Can a compensation scheme pay you?

Check compensation separately from the insolvency claim. Confirm the exact firm and regulated activity in the relevant regulator’s register, then ask the administrator and the scheme whether your client status and loss qualify. A scheme may cover only certain activities, authorized firms, eligible clients or shortfalls, and it may not cover digital assets simply because the firm used crypto.

What the UK examples show

In the Financial Conduct Authority’s Logic Investments example, the FCA says the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) may cover eligible custody-asset and client-money shortfalls up to £85,000, including distribution costs. That statement is specific to the activities and customers described in that case; it is not a general promise for crypto-investment accounts.

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In contrast, the FCA’s electronic-money and payment-services special-administration guidance says FSCS does not cover electronic money or payment services. The difference illustrates why the firm, authorization and activity must be checked rather than inferred from the word “investment” or from the presence of a crypto balance.

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How long will recovery take, and what might you receive?

There is no universal timetable. The UK Insolvency Service warns that distributions can take weeks, months or years. Investigators may need to trace wallets, reconcile customer ledgers, sell volatile assets, resolve competing ownership claims and obtain court directions before paying anyone.

  • Specific crypto: possible where the estate and court recognize a right to identifiable assets and the distribution mechanics are approved.
  • Cash: possible when assets are sold, when a debt claim is admitted, or when the process does not distribute tokens in kind.
  • Proportional distribution: common when admitted claims exceed available estate assets; each claimant receives a share according to the applicable priority and calculation.
  • No recovery: possible when the estate cannot pay the claim, the evidence does not establish entitlement, or the claim is rejected and the decision is not successfully challenged.

Crypto prices can move while a case is pending. The valuation date and conversion method in the case rules determine how that volatility affects your admitted amount; do not substitute a current app price for the method specified by the administrator or court.

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Jurisdiction-specific points to check

United Kingdom

Identify whether the matter is a special administration, compulsory liquidation, bankruptcy or another procedure. For a compulsory liquidation or bankruptcy, the Insolvency Service says the official receiver or insolvency practitioner should contact known creditors and request a proof of debt. A submitted proof keeps a creditor on future case correspondence, but the office may still admit only part of the amount or reject it.

United States

Read the bankruptcy court’s notice to distinguish an ordinary proof of claim from a SIPA customer claim. The court-appointed trustee, not a marketing intermediary, controls the customer-claim instructions in a SIPA liquidation. In an ordinary bankruptcy, supporting documents should accompany the written statement asserting your right to payment.

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European Union

For a covered crypto-asset custody service, MiCA Article 75 includes recordkeeping and segregation obligations, including legal segregation in accordance with applicable law. Confirm that the provider, service and date fall within MiCA’s scope and that the relevant national implementation and insolvency rules apply. MiCA does not replace the case-specific court process or decide every ownership dispute automatically.

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Australia and other jurisdictions

Use the local court, regulator and insolvency register to identify the appointed office. Trustee investigative guidance may describe useful evidence sources, but the claim form, ranking rules, compensation arrangements and deadlines come from the actual proceeding. Do not import a UK, U.S. or EU form into another jurisdiction without confirmation.

Protect yourself from recovery scams

Administrators and trustees are the people handling the estate. Anyone else must be independently verified before you share information or pay money.

  • Reject guarantees of a fixed recovery, an immediate release of coins or a special connection inside the estate.
  • Be suspicious of advance fees described as taxes, unlock charges, tracing deposits, insurance or blockchain verification.
  • Never provide passwords, two-factor codes, private keys, seed phrases or remote access to a device or wallet.
  • Confirm a caller’s identity using contact details taken from a regulator, court or official case notice—not from the caller’s email or message.
  • Check whether the official process is free before paying a filing intermediary.

In its electronic-money special-administration example, the FCA warned customers that “For most of the firm’s clients, there will be no benefit in involving a third party in making a claim.” That warning is specific to that case, but it is a useful reason to ask the appointed office whether a representative is necessary.

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In March 2026, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York warned about paid proof-of-claim solicitations and noted that its official filing routes are free. Other courts and countries may set different rules, so verify the local procedure before assuming a fee is legitimate.

What insolvency investigations can recover

Crypto can be traceable even when a firm has failed. Andrew Small, a crypto-intelligence specialist at the Insolvency Service, described the agency’s role this way: “Crypto is very much a recoverable asset, and my role will help the agency by providing specialist knowledge about the types of cryptoassets available and the associated technology used to buy, sell and store them.” The statement concerns assets investigated by the agency; it is not a promise that an individual customer will recover funds.

UK Insolvency Service measure 2019/20 2024/25 What it means
Cases in which crypto was identified as a recoverable asset 14 59 Number of insolvency cases involving identified crypto assets, not customer losses or repayments
Value identified in those cases £1,436 £523,580 Assets identified by investigators, not a forecast of any claimant’s distribution

The figures, published by the Insolvency Service in 2025, show why administrators may ask for wallet addresses, transaction histories and contextual explanations. They do not establish the value of assets in your case or the amount you will receive.

When specialist legal advice is worthwhile

Consider advice from a lawyer qualified in the governing jurisdiction when the claim is large, the contract includes lending or rehypothecation, the administrator classifies you as unsecured despite a custody argument, records conflict, a claim is rejected, or a court objection deadline is approaching. Ask the lawyer to identify the entity, proceeding, legal theory, valuation date, evidence gaps and cost before engagement.

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Legal advice does not replace filing the official claim on time. If you are consulting counsel, submit the required protective filing first when the rules allow it, then follow the procedure for amendments or objections.

One-page action checklist

  • Identify the contracting entity and the entity that held or controlled the assets.
  • Obtain the regulator, court or official case notice and record the appointed office, case number and deadline.
  • Download statements, transaction histories, contracts, funding records, wallet data and correspondence.
  • Create a reconciled schedule of each asset, quantity, transaction ID and relevant date.
  • Ask whether the office is assessing custody property, a pooled fund interest or a debt claim.
  • Use the specified claim form or portal; distinguish an ordinary proof of claim from a SIPA customer form.
  • Save the complete submission and confirmation, then monitor requests, decisions and amendments.
  • Check compensation eligibility for the exact firm, activity and client status.
  • Verify every contact independently and never disclose credentials or pay an unverified recovery fee.

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