Held swaps: why a deposit gets paused and what comes next
Seeing your swap on hold is unsettling. Here is why it happens, what you will usually be asked and how to get things moving again.
The vast majority of swaps complete without anyone ever looking at them. Once in a while, one gets paused. That can feel scary, but the cause is nearly always routine, and almost every held swap ends in one of two ways: the swap goes through, or you get a refund.
What causes a hold
Each incoming deposit is screened with blockchain analytics tools, which give the coins a score based on where they came from. When that score goes past a threshold, the deposit is paused. These are the common triggers.
- Coins that recently went through a service flagged for theft, scams or sanctions.
- Coins coming from a mixer or from a known high risk exchange.
- An amount that is unusually large next to normal traffic.
In many cases the sender did nothing wrong at all. Coins pass through many hands, and a payment you got from someone else can carry a history you never knew about.
What you may be asked
The usual question is simply where the coins came from. The answer might be a brief explanation, a screenshot showing the withdrawal from an exchange, or sometimes identity documents.
How we help
If your swap is held, reach out through the contact page or message @swap1337bot on Telegram with your swap ID. We work through it with you and keep following up until there is an answer. You deal with one contact from start to finish.
How to stay clear of holds
Send from your own wallet, using coins whose history you know. For big amounts, contact our private desk before you send, and one person will stay with you until your coins arrive. Find out more on our AML and large swaps page.
Quick answers
Are my coins lost if my swap is held?
In most cases, no. After the check, a held deposit is either released or sent back to your refund address. The exception is money tied to theft or sanctions, which may have to be frozen by law.
What is the fastest way to unblock a held swap?
Open a ticket and include your swap ID. A person at Swap1337 works through it with you and tells you exactly what is required.
Ready to swap? See the live rate. No account needed.
