iCE3 Exchange Halts Bitcoin, Litecoin Withdrawals After 'Discrepancies' Found

South African cryptocurrency exchange iCE3 has urged users to withdraw cryptocurrency holdings from its platform after it found “discrepancies” in its balances.

In an announcement on Tuesday, the exchange said, "After consultation and deliberation with our partner Merkeleon.com and [its] subsidiary Coinspaid.com, we have not been able to reach a satisfactory conclusion." Merkeleon.com is an Austrian-based software firm that builds exchanges and processes software.

iCE3 said, based on the advice of its legal and auditing team, it had suspended deposits and trading in the two cryptocurrencies.

It has also halted withdrawals of bitcoin and litecoin "pending the outcome of a full investigation and reconciliation," though other cryptocurrencies can be withdrawn. "We urge you to do so as soon as possible," the notice reads.

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Further status information available on the exchange's updates page.

CoinDesk has reached out to iCE3 seeking more information, but did not receive a response by press time.