Cryptocurrency exchange Hotbit announced it has suspended all of its services, citing an ongoing criminal investigation into a former management employee.
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The exchange wrote in a blog post that a "number of senior managers" have been subpoenaed by law enforcement since the end of July and are assisting in the investigation. Hotbit says law enforcement also froze some of its funds without elaborating on the cause. The exchange said:
"Hotbit and the rest employees of Hotbit's management are not involved in the project and have no knowledge of the illegal information involved in the project."
Hotbit claims it will resume "normal service: as soon as the assets are unfrozen. However, it remains unclear which regulatory agency blocked the exchange's assets and on what basis exactly.
In April 2021, Hotbit suffered the "biggest setback" since its establishment back in January 2018. According to an announcement, the exchange faced an attack around 08:00 PM UTC, April 29, 2021. It still remains unclear whether users' data had been compromised or not.
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