Two major cryptocurrency exchanges, Upbit and Binance, have announced temporary suspensions of deposit and withdrawal services for specific blockchain networks, citing upcoming network upgrades. The pauses are standard operational measures to ensure the security of user funds during protocol improvements.
Upbit halts ATOM for Cosmos upgrade
South Korea’s Upbit will suspend deposits and withdrawals of Cosmos (ATOM) tokens starting May 20 at 6:00 a.m. UTC. The move supports a network upgrade on the Cosmos blockchain, a decentralized network of independent parallel blockchains. Trading of ATOM is expected to continue normally, but users are urged to complete any pending transfers before the cutoff. The exchange has not given a precise end time, stating that services will resume once the upgrade is complete and the network is stable.
Binance pauses Base network on May 21
Binance, the world’s largest exchange by volume, will stop deposits and withdrawals for all tokens operating on the Base network May 21 at 5:00 p.m. UTC. Base, an Ethereum Layer-2 solution incubated by Coinbase, is undergoing a planned network upgrade and hard fork. Spot trading of affected tokens may continue, but asset movements on or off Binance will be frozen until the network is deemed stable. Historically, such suspensions last between one and four hours, though delays can occur.
Both exchanges emphasized that user funds remain secure during the pauses; only on-chain transfers are impacted. The temporary halts are routine and reflect the coordination required between centralized platforms and decentralized blockchain networks to prevent transaction failures during upgrades. Cosmos (ATOM) holders and Base network users should plan transactions accordingly and monitor official announcements for resumption updates.
