FTX payout blocked in mainland China: what you can do

If you live in mainland China or Macau, you can pass KYC and submit your tax form on the FTX claims portal and still get stuck. The payout never arrives.

Where the payout stops

FTX pays creditors only through three distribution service providers: BitGo, Kraken and Payoneer. Choosing one is step 8 of the claims portal. FTX’s support page lists mainland China and Macau among the places none of them serves right now, so at step 8 there is nothing to choose.

Chinese creditors are the largest group affected. In July 2025 the FTX Recovery Trust told the court that creditors in China held about 82% of the claim value in potentially restricted countries. The Trust withdrew that motion in November 2025, but it kept the right to file it again, and the provider list still doesn’t cover the mainland.

What creditors in mainland China and Macau should know

• In its July 2, 2025 motion on 49 potentially restricted jurisdictions, the FTX Recovery Trust said China made up 82% of the value of the affected claims. According to Cointelegraph's summary of the filing, Chinese regulators have repeatedly banned crypto transactions but have not explicitly prohibited individuals from holding digital assets.
• In July 2025, creditor Weiwei Ji filed an objection on behalf of more than 300 Chinese FTX creditors. He argued that crypto has recognized legal status in China. He also pointed to the Celsius case, where, he said, creditors were paid through Hong Kong-based accounts.
• At an October 23, 2025 hearing, the judge said it was too early for the Trust to adopt the restricted-jurisdiction procedures, Law360 reported. A Chinese creditor who attended told PANews that Judge Owens asked why other crypto bankruptcies, such as BlockFi and Celsius, could pay Chinese creditors. On November 3, 2025 the Trust withdrew the motion without prejudice, so it can file it again.
• On February 6, 2026, the People's Bank of China and seven other departments issued notice Yinfa [2026] No. 42, which repealed the 2021 crypto notice (Yinfa [2021] No. 237). The new notice keeps crypto exchange and trading services as illegal financial activity, says Tether and other virtual currencies have no legal tender status, and says overseas entities may not illegally provide virtual currency services to people in mainland China.
• Macau has its own rules. In September 2017 the Monetary Authority of Macao told banks and payment institutions in Macau not to provide, directly or indirectly, financial services related to virtual commodities and tokens.

The deadline

FTX says a creditor who doesn’t onboard with a payout provider within six months of the July 31, 2026 distribution may lose the right to their distributions. That window closes around January 31, 2027.

Two ways forward

• Wait. FTX gives no date for a provider in mainland China. If you can’t finish step 8 before the window closes (around January 31, 2027), you may lose the right to your payouts, so waiting can end with nothing.
• Sell your claim. ClaimBao buys FTX claims from creditors in mainland China and Macau, and pays in USDT or USDC. After the transfer, FTX pays us, so step 8 is no longer your problem.

How selling works

Send us your FTX Customer Code and the claim amount, and we reply with a price. Then KYC, the transfer agreement and the notice of transfer in the US bankruptcy court. USDT or USDC reaches your wallet on the date in the agreement.

In detailHow a deal with ClaimBao works→

Questions

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This guide is general information, not legal advice.