WazirX Relaunches Trading with Zero-Fee Model in Phased October Return: A Strategic Comeback After 2024 Hack
Introduction: A Calculated Reopening for India’s Former Market Leader
WazirX, once India’s leading cryptocurrency exchange, is officially set to resume trading on October 24, 2025, following the Singapore High Court's approval of its restructuring plan. This marks a pivotal moment for the exchange and its user base, concluding over a year of operational suspension triggered by a devastating security breach in July 2024. The relaunch strategy is multifaceted, centered on a user-friendly zero-fee trading model for a minimum of 30 days and a carefully orchestrated, phased reactivation of markets. Partnering with institutional custody specialist BitGo to bolster security, WazirX aims to rebuild trust and stabilize its platform. This article breaks down the phased return, the context of the 2024 hack, the new security infrastructure, and what users can expect as the exchange navigates its critical comeback.
The Court-Approved Roadmap: From Restructuring to Relaunch
The green light for WazirX’s return was not an internal decision but a judicially sanctioned one. The High Court of Singapore approved the exchange’s Scheme of Arrangement on October 13, 2025, formally clearing the path for the platform to restart operations. This legal endorsement provides a structured framework for the exchange’s recovery, ensuring that the interests of over 150,000 affected users are central to the process.
The court’s approval signifies the end of a turbulent chapter that began with the security incident. The restructuring plan outlined a clear roadmap for asset recovery and user repayment, making the relaunch part of a broader, legally supervised effort to make creditors whole. The phased trading resumption is designed to occur within the 10-business-day window stipulated in this court-sanctioned plan, ensuring the exchange adheres to its legal commitments from day one.
Phased Trading Resumption: A Methodical Approach to Market Stability
A key feature of the WazirX comeback is its deliberate, staggered approach to reopening markets. Rather than flipping a switch and reactivating all trading pairs simultaneously, the exchange will enable trading in phases over four days.
- Start Date: Trading resumes on October 24, 2025.
- Phased Rollout: Approximately 25% of all listed tokens will become available for trading each day.
- Full Functionality: The platform is scheduled to achieve complete operational status by October 27, 2025.
This methodology is a strategic risk mitigation tactic. By gradually reintroducing assets, WazirX and its users can monitor liquidity depth and price discovery mechanisms more carefully. The initial market structure will see all tokens tradable in the USDT market, while only the USDT/INR pair will be available in the INR market. The exchange has stated that additional INR trading pairs will be added later once stability is confirmed.
Zero-Fee Trading: A Confidence-Building Gesture
In a direct move to incentivize user return and ease the transition back into trading, WazirX has announced that all trading will commence with zero trading fees for a minimum of 30 days. Founder Nischal Shetty explicitly stated the goal of this initiative is to "rebuild confidence and make it easier for users to trade freely as the platform reopens."
In a tweet on October 23, 2025, Shetty reinforced this commitment: "0 Fee trading for minimum 30 days. We will try our best to extend even further! We want to be with our tribe and support you in whatever way we can." This zero-fee period acts as a significant user acquisition and retention tool, lowering the barrier to entry for both existing users testing the waters and new traders considering the platform.
Learning from the Past: The 2024 Security Breach and Its Aftermath
The relaunch cannot be fully understood without acknowledging the event that necessitated it. On July 18, 2024, hackers stole approximately $234.9 million from WazirX’s crypto wallets. This incident ranked as one of India's largest crypto security breaches and led to the immediate suspension of withdrawals and trading.
The hack initiated a period of extreme uncertainty for the exchange's user base and posed an existential threat to the business. The subsequent filing and eventual approval of the restructuring plan in Singapore were direct consequences of this breach, setting in motion the complex process of asset recovery and legal reconciliation that has culminated in the October 2025 relaunch.
Enhanced Security Posture: The BitGo Partnership
A critical component of WazirX’s strategy to regain user trust is a demonstrably stronger security framework. The exchange has publicly disclosed a partnership with BitGo, a globally recognized leader in digital asset custody.
This collaboration is aimed at introducing insured, institutional-grade storage solutions for user assets. By leveraging BitGo's technology and insurance policies, WazirX is addressing the core vulnerability exploited in the 2024 hack. This partnership forms part of the exchange’s broader communicated effort to enhance transparency and rebuild trust, signaling a shift towards more robust, professionalized asset protection standards.
Managing Expectations: User Guidance on Volatility and Liquidity
The WazirX team has been transparent about the potential challenges during the initial days of trading. Users have been cautioned to expect temporary price fluctuations and varying liquidity levels as markets reopen.
This is a standard warning for exchanges resuming operations after a long hiatus. The gradual release of tokens is intended to help manage this volatility, but the inherent imbalance between buy and sell orders in a nascent market can lead to significant price swings. The team has advised traders to "monitor liquidity carefully and avoid reacting to short-term volatility during the first few days of resumed trading," emphasizing a cautious and informed approach.
Token Management and Creditor Repayment
In preparation for the relaunch, WazirX has undertaken significant backend work on its listed assets. The exchange has completed a series of token swaps, mergers, delistings, and token migrations, alongside a rebranding campaign. This housekeeping ensures that the token listings active upon relaunch reflect current project statuses and market standards.
Most importantly for those affected by the hack, the exchange confirmed it will begin distributing tokens to creditors within 10 business days of the court order. Furthermore, WazirX plans to issue Recovery Tokens as part of its revival strategy, a mechanism often used in such situations to represent a claim on recovered assets or future platform revenue.
Conclusion: A Cautious but Significant Step Forward
The relaunch of WazirX is more than just an exchange reopening its doors; it is a case study in crisis management and user-centric recovery in the cryptocurrency industry. The combination of a court-approved plan, a phased trading rollout, an attractive zero-fee model, and a reinforced security partnership with BitGo presents a comprehensive, if cautious, blueprint for resurgence.
For the Indian crypto market, the return of a major player like WazirX introduces renewed competition and choice. However, the true test will be in its execution. Users and observers should watch several key metrics in the coming weeks: the stability of liquidity across different token pairs, the seamless execution of the creditor repayment plan, and ultimately, whether the enhanced security measures can withstand scrutiny over time. The successful implementation of this phased return could set a new benchmark for how crypto exchanges navigate severe operational disruptions and seek to earn back community trust.
Disclaimer: This article is based on publicly available information and official announcements. It is intended for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency markets are highly volatile; readers should conduct their own research and consult with a qualified professional before making any financial decisions.