Binance suspends deposits for 10 bridged tokens over Multichain situation

Binance, a centralized cryptocurrency exchange, has temporarily suspended deposits for 10 tokens due to ongoing issues with the Multichain bridge project.

This decision affects users of these bridged tokens on BNB Smart Chain, Fantom, Ethereum and Avalanche blockchain networks. The affected tokens include AVA-ETH, SPELL-AVAXC and FTM-ETH, per Binance. Deposits of these assets on other networks will continue uninterrupted, and users were told to refer to Binance’s deposit page for further information.

“We are temporarily suspending deposits for the following bridged tokens-network while we await clarity from the Multichain team,” said Binance. 

The suspension of these tokens follows a five-day long crisis experienced by Multichain users, which has impacted the processing of transactions, leading to multiple stuck transactions. Several of Multichain’s cross-chain bridge pathways — including Kava, zkSync, and Polygon zkEVM — are still not yet operational.

The Multichain project initially attributed the problem to technical issues. However, as discontent among users escalated, the explanation was updated to an ambiguous “force majeure.”

Multichain's issues come alongside unverified rumors on Twitter that the core leadership team may have been arrested in China. The Multichain team has not yet responded to the rumors regarding their alleged arrest. In the meantime, the platform’s users and the broader crypto community are left grappling with uncertainty and apprehension as they await clear information. 

The project’s Discord server and Telegram groups have provided no substantial updates to community members so far. 

In response, crypto projects are reacting to the team’s silence. In a separate development, the Fantom Foundation withdrew 450,000 MULTI tokens ($2.4 million) from liquidity on the decentralized exchange SushiSwap. Yesterday, crypto investment firm HashKey Group moved $250,000 to the crypto exchange Gate.io, and Tron founder Justin Sun withdrew 470,000 of the USDD stablecoin from the Multichain protocol itself.