“Forgotten” crypto assets worth $200 million discovered on the Bithumb exchange, 2026/01/03 09:25:23

South Korean crypto exchange Bithumb, the second largest in the country, has identified 2.6 million inactive client accounts whose owners have not logged into the account or conducted transactions for more than a year. The total amount of dormant funds in these accounts reached about $201.8 million.

The largest inactive balance was $2.84 million, and the longest period of inactivity on one account reached 4,380 days—almost 12 years. Bithumb explained that in past bull cycles, many retail investors entered the market, but subsequently they stopped actively using their accounts. Some of these accounts recorded profits in excess of 61,000%. This suggests that some of the assets were acquired at the very early stages of the development of the crypto market.

This is not the first campaign by Bithumb to identify dormant wallets. In 2025, celebrating its 11th anniversary, the exchange helped 36,000 users recover their assets with a total value of about $50 million. The main goal of such promotions is to help clients discover and recover funds that they may have already forgotten about. To do this, the exchange intends to directly contact clients and provide them with full assistance in restoring access to their accounts.

Activation of forgotten accounts is useful for the entire crypto market, according to Bithumb. Such assets represent unrealized liquidity – these are funds that could potentially return to the market. 

Earlier, the Financial Intelligence Unit of the Republic of Korea (FIU) reported an impending tightening of penalties if crypto platforms ignore the requirements of the legislation on the circulation of digital assets. The regulator plans to check the Korbit, GOPAX, Bithumb and Coinone crypto exchanges, as well as similar platforms.