The bull market of 2025 presents new opportunities for investors, yet the security of CEX remains a weak point in the crypto industry. In January, Singapore-based crypto exchange Phemex already faced a hot wallet hack.
This article, in collaboration with the CoinEx platform team, highlights what to consider when choosing a trading platform.
Trust, but Verify
Since the advent of the first centralized bitcoin exchanges, hacks have unfortunately become commonplace in the crypto industry. In March 2012, hackers stole 18,500 BTC from Bitcoinica’s hot wallet, and two years later, the collapse of Mt.Gox continued to weigh on the price of the first cryptocurrency for some time. The collapse of the FTX exchange marked the peak of the last bear market.
These bitter lessons have taught the community two rules:
- Store all or most crypto assets in non-custodial wallets.
- Be meticulous in choosing a cryptocurrency exchange.
CoinEx experts recommend considering the following aspects:
- the age of the crypto exchange. Surviving several market cycles indicates that the platform can adapt to various market conditions;
- the presence of Proof-of-Reserves. At the end of 2022, Binance, OKX, CoinEx, and other exchanges began publishing reserve audits to restore user trust after the FTX collapse;
- the public profile of the leadership. Companies aiming for long-term operations do not hide their leaders. They participate in conferences and other events to enhance brand recognition and trust.
According to CoinEx representatives, a trading platform is not just a place for buying and selling cryptocurrencies but also a key element in ensuring asset security.
“Even if you do not store assets on the exchange, you still entrust them to third parties during trading operations. Therefore, it is important to choose a platform with a good reputation that allocates resources and pays attention to security issues,” they conclude.
CoinEx Security
Like other exchanges, CoinEx has faced various challenges, including hacker attacks, since its founding in 2017. In September 2023, the exchange suffered a hot wallet hack amounting to $70 million.
The management responded promptly to the crisis, fully compensating affected users. In the same month, the platform transferred crypto assets to a new hot (online) wallet system and resumed withdrawals.
CoinEx’s hot wallets operate on multi-party computation (MPC) technology. The exchange team continuously monitors abnormal transfers, deposits, and withdrawals using an automated alert system.
Cold (offline) wallets use multi-signature to store the majority of user funds. CoinEx has developed its own cold storage system with hardware authentication and a system for monitoring abnormal transfers.
In supporting and implementing new security measures, CoinEx relies on:
- support from the ViaBTC mining pool. The exchange is part of the ViaBTC ecosystem and receives technical support from mining pool specialists who have been in the market for over eight years;
- partnership with SlowMist. The platform has entered into a strategic partnership with one of the leading cybersecurity companies, SlowMist. It aims to create a threat intelligence network and combat money laundering.
- Proof-of-Reserves. CoinEx implemented a reserve audit mechanism that ensures full transparency and verifiability of user funds.
In case of a potential hack, the exchange has created a Shield Fund reserve, which is regularly replenished with 10% of each trading fee on the platform. There is also a bounty program offering rewards of up to 10,000 USDT for reporting vulnerabilities in the security system.
Conclusions
When choosing a trading platform, it is important to consider reputation, leadership transparency, and a systematic approach to security. In a bull market, the support of new projects and the availability of services for quick asset deposits and withdrawals are particularly significant.
In 2025, CoinEx implemented a rapid listing strategy, is developing a P2P platform, and is expanding the use of the CET exchange token. According to company representatives, this approach makes the platform a sensible choice for investors during a market upturn.