The Canadian bitcoin exchange QuadrigaCX, which got into the lenses of the media after the death of founder Gerald Kotten, filed for bankruptcy, reports The Wall Street Journal. At the same time, in the course of the investigation, the publication found that funds from the stock exchange were withdrawn from $ 10.1 million to $ 24.7 million.

Jason Campbell hoping to pick up $ 1,000 in cash he had at a cryptocurrency exchange Quadriga. The door was locked. https://t.co/NwbO6FPQBD

– The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) February 19, 2019

The Elementus research lab claims that QuadrigaCX never had cold storage for Ethereum. They allegedly can confirm that 268,000 ETHs were transferred to the ShapeShift exchange platform, converted into bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies, and transferred to other platforms.

The New @WSJ article on #QuadrigaCX : Cash withdraws with the no accounting records, AT Least 268,000 Ether sent to Shapeshift and <br> we Were Able to Prove: Wallets of NO COLD holding Ether https://t.co/w9fgWikIth

– Elementus (@elementus_io) February 20, 2019

Suspicious is the fact, they note, that ShapeShift has relatively high commissions, and for such large operations it is not the most obvious choice.

Recall that the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia had previously granted the QuadrigaCX petition for temporary protection against creditors' claims, which is valid until March 7.

The court also ordered the law firms Miller Thomson and Cox & Palmer to represent the interests of 115 thousand users in future trials, reports CoinDesk .

Notably, an independent investigation by CoinDesk found transactions totaling 9,000 ETH that left QuadrigaCX a few days before Cotten's death. Funds were transferred to the Binance, Kraken and Poloniex exchanges.

It is assumed that the private keys to the cold storages of the exchange are encrypted on the laptop of the late CEO; however, back in 2014, he said that the exchange stores such data on paper in a bank safe.

Indian authorities confirmed the death of Kotten, which took place on December 8 at the private clinic Fortis Escorts in Jaipur. Despite this, many members of the community still question this, suggesting that death could have been rigged. Against the background of new facts, we can assume that the ranks of supporters of conspiracy theories will only increase.

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