Cryptocurrency Customers Can’t Access Their Funds Because of a CEO Dying

The last thing you want to find out after making an investment into something is that your money can’t be touched because the person who has the password to handle the money has died.

Shouldn’t there be some back up here?

The founder of Canadian crypto exchange QuadrigaCX, Gerald Cotten, has passed away and with him to his grave went a very important password.

Customers who have $190 million in cryptocurrency stores with the company are now wondering when they will see their money.

Cotten died this past December and according to his widow, she has no idea how to access the cold storage facility that has around 26,000 Bitcoin, 11,000 bitcoin cash, 200,000 Litecoin, and over 400,000 Ether and other digital currencies on a public computer.

“The laptop computer from which Gerry carried out the Companies’ business is encrypted and I do not know the password or recovery key. Despite repeated and diligent searches, I have not been able to find them written down anywhere,” explained Jennifer Robertson, Cotten’s widow, in an affidavit.

“For the past weeks, we have worked extensively to address our liquidity issues, which include attempting to locate and secure our very significant cryptocurrency reserves held in cold wallets, and that are required to satisfy customer cryptocurrency balances on deposit, as well as sourcing a financial institution to accept the bank drafts that are to be transferred to us,” the company stated. “Unfortunately, these efforts have not been successful.”

QuadrigaCX is expected to ask a judge to appoint Ernst & Young as an overseer for its financial issues.