Tether-backed Orionx to shut down after audit flags $7M custody gap
Tether-backed Orionx is permanently closing after an audit found more than $7 million in customer assets had moved to wallets outside its custody.
Crypto exchange Orionx, backed by stablecoin issuer Tether, is permanently closing its operations after an audit revealed a $7 million discrepancy in customer assets. The Chilean-based platform, which expanded digital asset adoption in Latin America, disclosed the closure on Thursday, stating that it is prioritizing the return of as many client assets as possible.
Withdrawals have been temporarily suspended. The audit, conducted following a review under Chile's Fintech Law, found that more than $7 million in custodial assets had moved to unmanaged wallets for Bitcoin, Ether, XRP, and Polygon. Orionx's COO detected a "significant mismatch" in August 2025, leading to an internal investigation and a subsequent forensic audit.
The audit uncovered that assets were transferred between 2018 and 2021, including to accounts controlled by former co-founders Roberto Zibert and Joaquín Díaz. Both denied the allegations, claiming they acted in customers' best interests but did not explain the cause of the asset shortfall. Founded in 2017, Orionx grew into a platform offering crypto payment and financial services in Chile, Peru, Colombia, and Mexico before Tether's $7 million investment in June 2025.
Orionx's closure marks a significant setback for the exchange, which had been expanding its reach in the Latin American crypto market.
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