Tether-Backed Chilean Exchange Orionx Closes After Audit Finds $7m Custody Shortfall

Orionx, a Chilean cryptocurrency exchange backed by Tether, is closing permanently after a forensic audit found that more than $7m in customer assets had been moved to wallets outside its custody, according to a Cointelegraph roundup published on 6 September.

The exchange has temporarily suspended withdrawals while it tries to return as much of its clients' assets as possible.

Former executives accused

Orionx has lodged a criminal complaint against Roberto Zibert and Joaquín Díaz, its co-founders and former executives. Both have denied wrongdoing.

According to local reports, the transfers in question took place between 2018 and 2021, well before Tether's investment. The stablecoin issuer was the lead investor when Orionx raised its Series A in June 2025, a deal tied to its push into Latin America.

The case underlines why custody sits at the centre of exchange risk. Customers of a custodial platform rely on their assets being held in full and kept separate from the business. A gap that goes undetected for years can leave them exposed regardless of how the rest of the operation is run.

It is not yet clear how much of the missing amount can be recovered, or when withdrawals will resume.

Poland's veto stands

In Poland, lawmakers failed to overturn President Karol Nawrocki's veto of legislation designed to strengthen oversight of the country's digital-asset market.

The vote came as an investigation into Zondacrypto widens, according to the report. The outcome leaves the bill's tighter supervisory framework off the statute book at a moment when the domestic market is under closer scrutiny.

Sheriffs drop CLARITY Act opposition

In the US, the National Sheriffs' Association withdrew its opposition to the CLARITY Act, the crypto market-structure bill, ahead of a key Senate vote.

The shift removes one source of resistance from a law-enforcement group before senators take up the bill, although the report did not set out what prompted the association's change of position.

What to watch

For Orionx customers, the immediate questions are how much of the shortfall can be recovered and how the criminal complaint proceeds. In Poland, attention turns to the Zondacrypto investigation and whether lawmakers revisit oversight of the sector. In Washington, the Senate vote is the next milestone for the CLARITY Act.