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WazirX Founder Admits Poll Sham

Published

3 months ago

July 29, 2024

WazirX finds itself embroiled in controversy following a contentious poll conducted on July 27. The WaxirX poll, which sought user input on a sensitive issue, has ignited a firestorm of criticism from both industry observers and customers.

As the debate intensifies, WazirX’s founder has stepped forward to address the concerns, sparking a larger conversation about transparency, user rights, and decision-making processes in the cryptocurrency sector.

WazirX’s Controversial Poll

WazirX, a prominent Indian cryptocurrency exchange, is facing severe criticism from industry peers and customers following its recent Withdrawal Management Programme: Opinion Poll. The poll, conducted after a massive $230 million hack that affected 45% of user funds, has been deemed misleading and potentially detrimental to the crypto ecosystem.

The July 27th WaxirX poll presented users with two options regarding their remaining funds, framed as a strategy to distribute losses equitably. However, the approach has been widely criticized as unfair and possibly illegal.

In response to the backlash, WazirX co-founder Nischal Shetty has attempted to clarify that the poll was not legally binding and was merely intended to gauge customer opinions. The exchange has promised to launch a more comprehensive feedback form in the near future.

This clarification came after significant criticism from the crypto community. Co-founders of competing exchanges, including Giottus, CoinDCX, and Unocoin, publicly expressed their disapproval of WazirX’s handling of the situation. They argued that the approach is not in the best interest of customers or the broader crypto ecosystem.

Customers have also voiced their concerns, questioning the fairness and legality of the proposed strategy. Many have criticized the idea of penalizing users whose tokens were not directly affected by the hack. Reports suggest that WazirX has reached out to its former partner, Binance, seeking assistance in compensating affected customers. However, WazirX has not yet confirmed these reports.

This incident with the WaxirX poll shows that the potential of the crypto exchange managing security risks and maintaining user trust amid ongoing challenges faced is to be questioned. However it remains to be seen how this controversy will impact user trust and the platform’s reputation amid looming legal action by users.

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Recovery Efforts and Future Plans

WazirX has made show of some efforts to recover the stolen funds. The exchange has launched two bounty programs for on-chain investigators. The track and freeze bounty offers up to $10,000 in Tether (USDT) for actionable intelligence leading to the freezing of stolen funds.

In a July 25 update, Shetty informed users about the platform’s efforts to resume withdrawals. He mentioned that they were working on implementing the poll and were aiming to go live with it imminently. The founder also emphasized the need for legal review, stating that they were consulting with legal experts on the duration of the poll and the potential date for reopening the platform if poll results are positive.

WazirX’s initial plan involves starting with a portion of users’ crypto portfolio values in locked tokens. Shetty assured users that they would continue to work on finding solutions to unlock these tokens as well.

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