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Confusion continues as FTX, the world's third largest cryptocurrency exchange, filed for bankruptcy last week.

Investors' withdrawals are blocked, and there is no promise as to when or how much they will get back.



Reporter Im Tae-woo reports.



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FTX exchange app has been stuck for a few days.



Virtual currency transactions as well as withdrawals for investment were all blocked.



[FTX domestic users: I was investing a small amount because I thought that the coin craze would re-emerge, but it is a bit daunting because the withdrawal is suddenly blocked.]



An IT research institute investigated the nationalities of users of this exchange, and the proportion of Koreans was 6 % was the highest.



We analyzed that the reason why there are so many Koreans is because, unlike Korean exchanges, various trading options such as futures are possible.



[Charlie Cooper/Blockchain Alliance Executive: Just a few days ago, many customers who trusted the FTX exchange with their money have now started to withdraw their money, but I have come to realize that they have never been able to find it.]



The problem is that it is not easy to get back the investment. .



If a bank goes bankrupt, the state protects it to some extent, but virtual currency is out of the system from birth, so there is no protection.



If the exchange goes bankrupt, individual investors can shed their debts and share the remaining assets.



However, it is uncertain whether there will be any assets left as there are already 66 trillion won in debt.



FTX suffered a huge loss while running a random investment business with stolen customer money and self-issued virtual currency, and the money to give out ran out when the big hands who became anxious all withdrew.



What's more, it's headquartered in the Bahamas, a famous tax haven, which makes it more difficult to recover.



[Jim Bianco / CEO of Bianco Research: Exchange users may not be able to get their investment back in the next few years.

After all bankruptcy procedures are completed, I think only a small portion of the money will be returned.]



As the Luna Coin crisis and the bankruptcy of large exchanges exploded, the credibility of virtual currency-related stocks plummeted.



(Video coverage: Jeong Seong-hwa, video editing: Park Ki-duk)