Audit log

Every state-changing event for Multichain: moderation decisions on community submissions, plus corrections and updates from the news pipeline. URL-based decisions are designed to carry three independent witnesses — the original source, an Internet Archive snapshot, and a Solana memo signed by our publicly-disclosed publisher key. Archive coverage is still being backfilled, so each decision below reports its own snapshot status rather than assuming one exists.

1. #1publishby system:backfill

   2026-05-20 18:22:03Z
   Score: ? → ? (no score change)
   anchoranchored

   chain

   ●mainnet-betaslot 421,038,837

   sig

   3GfptkneNRxY…bEu6LSLpcopyexplorer ↗

   hash

   8xjeGajh6fPh…g4d5gJHjcopysha256 → base58

   verifying row…full verify ↗

   canonical bytes (6673 B) ▸

   {"actor":"system:backfill","investigation_id":"a7494e2f-bbed-4892-a2cc-55eee9a00bae","kind":"publish","page_slug":"multichain","published_at":"2026-05-20T18:22:03.210Z","sequence_num":1,"snapshot":{"content_type":"investigation","entity_name":"Multichain","sections":[{"content":"","heading":"","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/multichain-previously-anyswap-raises-a-60m-financing-round-led-by-binance-labs-301448810.html"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://creditcoin.org/blog/life-after-multichain/"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://li.fi/knowledge-hub/multichain-a-deep-dive/"}]},{"content":"","heading":"","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-07-14/crypto-bridge-multichain-shuts-down-says-chinese-police-arrested-ceo"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://www.coindesk.com/business/2023/07/14/crypto-bridging-protocol-multichain-ceases-operations"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://www.elitigation.sg/gd/s/2024_SGHC_173"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://www.dlnews.com/articles/defi/multichain-halts-use-of-crypto-bridge-saying-ceo-arrested/"}]},{"content":"","heading":"","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://unchainedcrypto.com/hack-or-rugpull-multichain-sees-126-million-abnormal-outflows/"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://www.theblock.co/post/238299/multichain-warning-outflow"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://decrypt.co/147622/126m-multichain-funds-abnormally-moved-unknown-address-says-project"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://www.crowdfundinsider.com/2023/07/210074-multichain-halts-operations-as-ceo-zhaojuns-sister-now-detained-by-chinese-authorities-might-be-holding-220m-of-funds/"}]},{"content":"","heading":"","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://www.chainalysis.com/blog/multichain-exploit-july-2023/"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://www.dlnews.com/articles/defi/singapore-court-fuels-view-multichain-hack-was-inside-job/"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://protos.com/multichain-protocol-secretly-restarts-to-another-1-million-exploit/"}]},{"content":"","heading":"","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://www.elitigation.sg/gd/s/2024_SGHC_173"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://www.dlnews.com/articles/defi/singapore-court-fuels-view-multichain-hack-was-inside-job/"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://www.chaincatcher.com/en/article/2117693"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://www.cryptotimes.io/2024/01/16/multichain-ceo-resurfaces-amid-speculation-over-his-release/"}]},{"content":"","heading":"","severity":"medium","sources":[{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://www.chainalysis.com/blog/multichain-exploit-july-2023/"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://www.halborn.com/blog/post/explained-the-multichain-hack-july-2023"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://protos.com/multichain-protocol-secretly-restarts-to-another-1-million-exploit/"},{"credibility":3,"name":"","type":"other","url":"https://cointelegraph.com/news/multichain-stops-operations-over-lack-of-funds"}]}],"sources_used":[],"summary":"Multichain (formerly AnySwap) was a cross-chain bridge protocol that collapsed in mid-2023 following the arrest of its CEO Zhaojun by Chinese police in May 2023, which resulted in the seizure of private keys controlling over $1.5 billion in user assets. On July 7, 2023, approximately $126–127 million was drained from Multichain bridge reserves in transfers widely attributed to Chinese authorities or insiders with access to the CEO's confiscated key material. The protocol formally ceased operations on July 14, 2023, leaving users with unrecoverable losses.","timeline":[{"date":"2020-07-20","event":"AnySwap launched as a cross-chain decentralized exchange by CEO Zhaojun.","source":""},{"date":"2021-12-21","event":"Multichain (formerly AnySwap) raises $60 million at a $1.2 billion valuation led by Binance Labs, with Sequoia China, IDG Capital, and Three Arrows Capital among investors.","source":""},{"date":"2022-01-01","event":"Multichain TVL exceeds $10 billion at peak, making it one of the largest cross-chain bridge protocols in DeFi.","source":""},{"date":"2023-05-21","event":"CEO Zhaojun He is detained by Chinese police in Kunming. His devices, hardware wallets, mnemonic phrases, and cloud server credentials — which controlled the bridge's MPC infrastructure — are confiscated.","source":""},{"date":"2023-05-31","event":"Multichain team publicly acknowledges inability to contact Zhaojun, citing unexplained operational disruptions.","source":""},{"date":"2023-07-06","event":"Approximately $126–127 million in assets begins draining from Multichain's Fantom, Dogecoin, and Moon River bridges. Multichain issues an 'abnormal' outflow warning.","source":""},{"date":"2023-07-09","event":"Zhaojun's sister allegedly accesses remaining customer funds via Zhaojun's cloud server credentials and transfers assets to wallets under her control, describing it as 'asset preservation.'","source":""},{"date":"2023-07-13","event":"Zhaojun's sister is taken into custody by Chinese police.","source":""},{"date":"2023-07-14","event":"Multichain formally announces cessation of all operations, citing the CEO's arrest, loss of server access, and inability to obtain operational funds.","source":""},{"date":"2023-11-01","event":"Multichain bridge briefly and secretly reopens; an additional $1 million is exploited. Fantom Foundation CEO attributes the event to former Multichain team members.","source":""},{"date":"2024-01-16","event":"Zhaojun's Telegram status changes to 'last seen recently,' fueling speculation about his status in Chinese custody.","source":""},{"date":"2024-01-30","event":"Fantom Foundation obtains default judgment against Multichain Foundation Ltd and Multichain Pte Ltd in Singapore courts; neither entity contested the claims.","source":""},{"date":"2024-07-08","event":"Singapore High Court (Judicial Commissioner Mohamed Faizal) rules Multichain owes Fantom Foundation US$2,187,870.55, finding the CEO held centralized control over bridge assets in breach of the User Agreement.","source":""}]},"v":1}

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2. #2rescoreby systemsystem

   2026-10-10 18:42:08Z
   Score: 10 → 32 (+22)
   Rescored under Scoring v2, the published formula (avoid.net/scoring): 10 → 32. Problems weighed by who is responsible: the subject's own conduct −40, problems around the subject, caused by others −0.8; legitimacy credit long-running +8.
   anchoranchored

   chain

   ●mainnet-betaslot 455,361,600

   sig

   NZKBi5pLfwaP…q36miLopcopyexplorer ↗

   hash

   5LReFQAYNZ52…NirFyThCcopysha256 → base58

   verifying row…full verify ↗

   canonical bytes (601 B) ▸

   {"actor":"system","decided_at":"2026-10-10T18:42:08.290Z","decision":"rescore","investigation_id":"a7494e2f-bbed-4892-a2cc-55eee9a00bae","new_score":32,"page_slug":"multichain","prev_score":10,"reason":"Rescored under Scoring v2, the published formula (avoid.net/scoring): 10 → 32. Problems weighed by who is responsible: the subject's own conduct −40, problems around the subject, caused by others −0.8; legitimacy credit long-running +8.","score_delta":22,"score_model":"v2","sequence_num":2,"submission_content_hash":null,"submission_id":null,"submission_kind":null,"submission_valence":null,"v":1}

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3. #3reviewby reviewerreviewer

   2026-11-03 23:51:43Z
   Score: 32 → 32 (no score change)
   The core narrative (CEO detention, about $126M drain, shutdown on 2023-07-14, Singapore damages award) matches the sources checked. Issues: the Singapore court 'finding' on CEO control appears to be the claimant's position in a default judgment, the $265M total is not in the cited Chainalysis post, and the page misses the May 2025 liquidation order. Only a small sample of claims was checked.
   anchoranchored

   chain

   ●mainnet-betaslot 465,090,111

   sig

   2KknwyzTdaCa…irmaXub7copyexplorer ↗

   hash

   FqLZdNTa4STi…SREad6Z9copysha256 → base58

   verifying row…full verify ↗

   canonical bytes (1244 B) ▸

   {"actor":"reviewer","artifact_identity":"38a4484fb743985686c07704320ef6de","decided_at":"2026-11-03T23:51:43.193Z","decision":"review","disputed_pct":0.1667,"findings_hash":"HFhxgLXZnMdTN19nRCFEcJcudTpFperTcngTyhbrHRPx","investigation_id":"a7494e2f-bbed-4892-a2cc-55eee9a00bae","judge_def_hash":"750934ecb48272224909b7430fab271676d391380fbc821acbe7ee7e4cac2fa3","new_score":32,"omissions":{"material":1,"total":1},"page_content_hash":"aabdd20ec72a568a1ff9a0915a3226c8adfbfc63a43f48001e59ce43136502c7","page_slug":"multichain","prev_score":32,"reason":"The core narrative (CEO detention, about $126M drain, shutdown on 2023-07-14, Singapore damages award) matches the sources checked. Issues: the Singapore court 'finding' on CEO control appears to be the claimant's position in a default judgment, the $265M total is not in the cited Chainalysis post, and the page misses the May 2025 liquidation order. Only a small sample of claims was checked.","reviewer_def_hash":"3839668b232611e5b26db72079d64745f8e57e919b8a379e79b44ba4a52c845b","score_delta":0,"sequence_num":3,"subject_status":"shut_down","subject_status_contradicts_page":false,"submission_content_hash":null,"submission_id":null,"submission_kind":null,"submission_valence":null,"v":1}

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4. #4review reviseby judgejudge

   2026-11-03 23:51:43Z
   Score: 32 → 32 (no score change)
   Of six claims checked, one (claim_findings[1], the $265 million total) could not be found in its cited Chainalysis source and contradicts the page's own $126-127 million headline, which puts the percentage in the minor band at about 17%. Two further findings (claim_findings[0] and [5]) show a Singapore court 'finding' on CEO control that appears to be only the claimant's position in a default judgment. The page also misses the May 2025 winding-up order against Multichain Foundation (omission_findings[0], material), so it presents as speculation something that has already happened. Because of the material omission and the overstated court finding, the page is judged in the significant band; the reviewer's confidence is modest (0.55) and the sample was small, so the penalty sits at the lower end of that band.
   anchoranchored

   chain

   ●mainnet-betaslot 465,090,115

   sig

   3RG6DgsPS1Vg…LK1vgaqRcopyexplorer ↗

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   F1uL48htECKG…c2VqmT9Xcopysha256 → base58

   verifying row…full verify ↗

   canonical bytes (2078 B) ▸

   {"actor":"judge","artifact_identity":"38a4484fb743985686c07704320ef6de","band_override":null,"decided_at":"2026-11-03T23:51:43.193Z","decision":"review_revise","delist_requested":false,"disputed_pct":0.1667,"investigation_id":"a7494e2f-bbed-4892-a2cc-55eee9a00bae","judge_def_hash":"750934ecb48272224909b7430fab271676d391380fbc821acbe7ee7e4cac2fa3","new_score":32,"page_slug":"multichain","prev_score":32,"reason":"Of six claims checked, one (claim_findings[1], the $265 million total) could not be found in its cited Chainalysis source and contradicts the page's own $126-127 million headline, which puts the percentage in the minor band at about 17%. Two further findings (claim_findings[0] and [5]) show a Singapore court 'finding' on CEO control that appears to be only the claimant's position in a default judgment. The page also misses the May 2025 winding-up order against Multichain Foundation (omission_findings[0], material), so it presents as speculation something that has already happened. Because of the material omission and the overstated court finding, the page is judged in the significant band; the reviewer's confidence is modest (0.55) and the sample was small, so the penalty sits at the lower end of that band.","reviewer_def_hash":"3839668b232611e5b26db72079d64745f8e57e919b8a379e79b44ba4a52c845b","score_delta":0,"sequence_num":4,"severity_override":{"applied":true,"band":"significant","from_band":"minor","reason":"The percentage alone (1 of 6 findings unverifiable, about 17%) gives the minor band. The review reports a material omission: on 9 May 2025 the Singapore High Court ordered Multichain Foundation wound up and appointed KPMG as liquidators, while the page only speculates that the judgment 'could enable' a liquidator. In addition, the court-finding claim in sections[1] and timeline[12] attributes to the court what appears to be the claimant's position in a default judgment, which bears on a core allegation about CEO control."},"submission_content_hash":null,"submission_id":null,"submission_kind":null,"submission_valence":null,"v":1}

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