How Exchanges Plan To Deal With a Possible August 1 Fork

Over the past week, many bitcoin exchanges have revealed plans for the possibility of a network fork on August 1, 2017.
In about a week there still may be a possibility of a network fork come August 1, even though Segwit2x is showing strong consensus. If miners fail to continue joining forces to enact BIP91 and Segregated Witness, then the UASF and UAHF plans could still happen, in fact, the UAHF may happen regardless. Below is a compiled list of exchanges that have detailed their contingency plans for an upcoming fork, as some of them will be halting deposits and withdrawals and taking the necessary steps to secure their trading platforms and customer assets.
A List of Current Exchanges That Have Issued Statements Concerning a Possible August 1 Fork
Xapo
The bitcoin company Xapo has issued a statement about August 1 telling customers that bitcoin transactions during a fork will be suspended. Xapo says if users need to do transactions during a fork, customers should get their bitcoins off Xapo before August 1. Coins held on the exchange will be available after the network change and “Xapo will keep your bitcoins safe,” explains the firm.
GDAX/ Coinbase
Coinbase and GDAX have made similar statements because they are the same company. The San Fransico-based firm has detailed that it will suspend deposits and withdrawals during an August 1 fork scenario and may halt trading. As far as the user-activated hard fork is concerned GDAX and Coinbase have also announced they will not support that chain and its associated token. Coinbase recommends that those interested in acquiring UAHF tokens should remove their bitcoins from their exchanges.
Huobi
The Chinese exchange Huobi has issued a report on its plans to suspend bitcoin deposits and withdrawals on August 1 due to “potential technical risks.” The exchange details, “if there is no fork, and the network is stable, we will resume deposits and withdrawals from Bitcoin.” Further, the company says that if customers are not comfortable with their wallet or feel they are not protected with anti-replay attack software, then they should deposit funds on Huobi before August 1.
BTCC
BTCC has also announced its contingency plan stating that the exchange will honor both a minority and majority chain. However, the trading platform has not detailed if it will suspend deposits and withdrawals at this time. “In the case of a hard fork, BTCC will give existing customers tokens on the minority chains based on how many tokens they have on the majority chain at the time of the hard fork. We will update users as the situation progresses,” explains the Chinese exchange BTCC.
Okcoin
Another Chinese exchange, Okcoin has announced that it will suspend deposits and withdrawals. The company’s statements are nearly identical to Huobi’s contingency plan. The company does say that if Bitcoin splits into several blockchains, the exchange will honor “every blockchain and give users their rightful ownership of their Bitcoin.” Further Okcoin says that if anything “unexpected” happens the trading platform will suspend bitcoin trades as well.
Gemini
The Gemini exchange issued its statement concerning August 1 saying the company will do their “best to support chain withdrawals.” However, the exchange details that unlike the Ethereum / Ethereum Classic bifurcation last year they cannot “guarantee” they will be successful as there is a lack of “bidirectional repetition protection in the different bifurcations of Bitcoin Core (including Segwit2x, UASF, BitcoinABC, and Bitcoin Unlimited).”
Bity
The Switzerland based cryptocurrency exchange Bity has detailed it will be suspending deposits, withdrawals, and trading as soon as the 29th of July approaches. The company says it is preparing replay-protection and will “start bitcoin trading as soon as the dust settles and we know which chain(s) is(are) surviving.”
Kraken
The exchange Kraken has not officially given any statements about the fork. However, during a recent podcast, Krakens CEO Jesse Powell details that the trading platform will have to freeze deposit and withdrawal funding. “Everybody with a balance on Kraken would have two coins” in the event of a fork says, Powell. Depending on the risks of replay attacks customers should receive both tokens.
Thirteen Japanese Exchanges
According to Japan’s Cryptocurrency Business Association (JCBA), thirteen exchanges have announced suspending bitcoin services on August 1. This means participating exchanges will suspend deposits, withdrawals, and possibly trading. The exchanges suspending services include Bitbank, Bitpoint, Quoine, Fisco, Coincheck, Btc Box, Tech Bureau (Zaif Exchange), GMO-Z.com, Campfire Corporation, Bit Trade, Bitcrements, Tokyo Bitcoin, and Minnano Bitcoin.
Bitflyer
Japan’s largest exchange that wasn’t included in the JCBA list, Bitflyer published its plan on July 21. Bitflyer says that customer assets will be protected and a “coin made by each of the two (or more) chains after branching will be given to customers.” Additionally, Bitflyer is taking countermeasures for replay attacks that may occur during blockchain branching. Alongside this, the Japanese exchange will also temporarily stop deposits and withdrawals until the protocol changes are complete.
Many More Exchanges Still Haven’t Told Customers Their Contingency Plans, But Have Issued Statements in the Past
That sums up the list of exchanges that have issued statements concerning a potential split and suspension of services. There still are many exchanges that have not revealed their plans such as Poloniex, Bitfinex, Bitstamp, Bithumb, Korbit, and a host of other trading platforms. At the moment people speculate that certain exchanges may be relying on the issued statements many trading platforms made last March or during the Ethereum split.
Are there any exchanges that you’ve heard from that’s not on this list? Let us know about it in the comments below.