CoinEx to Shut Down as CET Buyback and Withdrawals Begin

| unchainedcrypto.com
CoinEx will cease operations on 22 December 2026, exactly nine years after its launch. The exchange cited prolonged crypto-market weakness, falling trading volume and liquidity, and rising regulatory and compliance costs. CoinEx ended new registrations and several financial services on 15 September. Futures trading moved to reduce-only mode, while non-spot services will end on 22 September. Spot trading, CoinEx Smart Chain and OneSwap will stop on 29 September. CoinEx Wallet and CoinEx Vault are expected to continue operating independently. CoinEx will keep withdrawals open until 22 December at 02:00 UTC. Users seeking their original assets should withdraw them before spot trading ends. Assets with external liquidity may be sold into USDT, while illiquid tokens could be delisted without further redemption support. USDT left after the deadline will enter separate custody and incur a monthly fee equal to 5% of the original balance. Claims will be accepted until 22 August 2028. The exchange said its reserves exceed 100% and that customer assets are fully backed. It will repurchase CET without a quantity limit at 0.005 USDT, described as the token’s initial listing price. Founder Haipo Yang said he rejected a potential sale in favour of an orderly closure. CoinGecko listed CoinEx’s 24-hour trading volume at about $72.2 million. The CoinEx shutdown adds to recent exchange-closure concerns and may increase scrutiny of liquidity, withdrawals and compliance risks.
Bearish
The expected impact on CET is bearish. In the short term, the CoinEx shutdown removes the token’s primary trading venue and creates uncertainty around liquidity, user withdrawals and potential forced conversions. Although the 0.005 USDT buyback provides a stated reference price and may limit immediate downside for eligible holders, traders may still sell ahead of the trading and withdrawal deadlines. The long-term outlook is also negative because CoinEx is ending its exchange operations and related projects, reducing CET’s utility, market access and investor demand. The buyback could provide temporary support, but it does not offset the loss of the platform’s ecosystem. Historical exchange closures have often produced elevated volatility, widening spreads and sharp declines in affected exchange tokens. The closure is unlikely to materially move the broader crypto market, but CET faces significant idiosyncratic downside and liquidity risk.