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FTX Creditor KYC Process and Claim Status Issues on BitGo

FTX Creditor KYC Process and Claim Status Issues on BitGo

Problem

FTX creditors who selected BitGo as their Distribution Service Provider frequently contact support with questions about their KYC (Know Your Customer) verification status, inability to complete KYC steps, discrepancies between their BitGo KYC status and what the FTX claims portal displays, and questions about next steps after KYC approval. These issues span individual and institutional accounts and involve the BitGo onboarding flow, the Persona identity verification system, periodic review requirements, and the FTX claims portal synchronization.

Diagnostics

  • Look up the customer's enterprise in the internal admin tool using their registered email address. Confirm the enterprise ID, plan type (e.g., "free (FTX Retail)"), source (e.g., "ftx-retail"), and Organization KYC Status (approved, pending, docs requested, etc.).
  • Check whether the email the customer is using matches the FTX Customer Portal email. Per FTX requirements: "Your FTX Customer Portal email must match your Distribution Service Provider account email."
  • Identify who is specified as the enterprise owner — this is the user who must log in to complete KYC and activate the Go Account. The enterprise owner may differ from the person contacting support.
  • Check the Persona dashboard for the customer's KYC case status (approved, pending, docs requested, expired link, failed verification).
  • Look for emails sent from @cases.withpersona.com to the customer requesting additional documents or information.
  • Determine if the customer has a standard BitGo starter enterprise vs. an FTX-linked enterprise — the standard starter enterprise does not affect FTX distribution and does not require KYC completion.
  • Verify whether the Go Account has been activated under the Trade tab. Distribution requires an active Go Account.
  • Check if the FTX claims portal shows "Onboarding Incomplete" — this may be an FTX-side sync delay rather than a BitGo issue.
  • Always check and share the actual KYC status in the initial response. Before sending any reply, look up the customer's current KYC status in the admin tool and Persona dashboard. Include the actual status (e.g., approved, pending, docs requested) in your first response to the customer. Do not send a generic reply without first reviewing and communicating the customer's real account status.

Resolution

Scenario: kyc-ftx-process-claim#kyc-approved-no-action-needed

Trigger: Customer asks about their KYC status and internal records show Organization KYC Status as "approved."

Signals: KYC status, approved, completed, no further action, FTX distribution, ready

Steps:

  1. Confirm in the admin tool that the KYC status for the customer's BitGo-FTX enterprise is "approved."
  2. Inform the customer: "KYC for your BitGo-FTX account associated with [their email] has been successfully approved. No further action is required from your side at this time."
  3. Advise the customer to activate their Go Account under the Trade tab at the BitGo dashboard if not already done.
  4. If the customer asks about distribution timelines, direct them to the official FTX claims portal: https://claims.ftx.com and state that BitGo is not able to provide any timeline regarding the distribution of funds.
  5. For additional distribution timeline questions, point them to FTX's official support contacts: https://support.ftx.com/hc/en-us/articles/19223337707412-Official-Email-Addresses
  6. Direct them to the BitGo FTX FAQ: https://www.bitgo.com/ftx-faq

Notes: If the FTX portal still shows "Onboarding Incomplete" despite BitGo KYC being approved, advise the customer to follow up with FTX Support directly as the discrepancy is on FTX's side and BitGo cannot fix it.

"Your KYC is fully approved and completed with Bitgo. The issue exist with FTX and their ability to update their site. We have no information regarding Liquid as our participation in this process is simply collecting and approving user KYC. As the issue is on FTX's side of things, they are solely responsible for fixing. There is nothing left for you to perform at this time with your KYC for Bitgo." (ticket #31376)

"This is to inform that KYC for your BitGo-FTX account under [EMAIL] is approved and no further action is required at this point. Please ensure you are using this same email address for your claim at FTX portal. For any discrepancy status showing at FTX portal, please follow up with FTX Support directly as BitGo's record reflects your KYC as approved and there is nothing else we can do here." (ticket #84939)

Scenario: kyc-ftx-process-claim#docs-requested-pending-customer-action

Trigger: Customer's KYC status shows "Docs Requested - Customer" or "Documents Requested" and they have not responded to the KYC team's email.

Signals: docs requested, documents requested, pending, awaiting review, @cases.withpersona.com, KYC email

Steps:

  1. Check the Persona dashboard for the specific document request sent to the customer.
  2. In your initial response, share the current KYC status with the customer (e.g., "We have reviewed your account and your KYC status is currently 'Documents Requested.' Our KYC team has sent you an email requesting additional information.").
  3. Advise the customer to check their inbox (including spam, junk, promotions, social, and trash folders) for an email from the domain @cases.withpersona.com.
  4. If the customer cannot find the email, inform them to whitelist emails from @cases.withpersona.com.
  5. If the Persona link has expired, request the KYC team to resend a new link via the internal Slack channel or by coordinating with the compliance/operations team.
  6. If the customer has questions about KYC requirements, advise them to reply directly to the email thread with the KYC team (from @cases.withpersona.com) as that team can best advise on specifics.

Notes: The periodicreview@bitgo.com address has been reported to bounce emails. If a customer mentions this, acknowledge and route their query through support@bitgo.com or ftxcreditors@bitgo.com instead.

"We have already submitted the KYC materials for FTX creditor CYBX Limited in July 2024, and the KYC page on BitGo's website are still shown as below - 'Awaiting Review' as of today. There is no 'Notification Badge' on the web page, nor 'Periodic Review' button available." (ticket #30376)

"Please check for an email from the domain: @cases.withpersona.com for KYC. If you haven't received it, kindly let us know." (ticket #27219)

Scenario: kyc-ftx-process-claim#enterprise-owner-must-log-in

Trigger: The person contacting support is not the enterprise owner, and the enterprise owner must log in to complete KYC or activate the Go Account.

Signals: enterprise owner, specified, logs in, activate Go Account, Trade tab, Start Trading

Steps:

  1. Identify who is listed as the enterprise owner in the admin tool.
  2. Inform the customer: "We see you have specified [enterprise owner email] as your BitGo-FTX enterprise owner. Hence, to complete the KYC, please have [enterprise owner email] log in to complete any pending KYC/review and also to activate your Go Account under the Trade tab at BitGo dashboard."
  3. If the enterprise owner needs to reset their password, provide the link: https://app.bitgo.com/web/auth/forgot-password/recover-password
  4. If the enterprise owner has left the company and access is lost, coordinate with the Trust team to update the enterprise owner after receiving proper documentation (e.g., corporate registry documents).

Notes: The enterprise owner can invite additional users at Enterprise settings > Users tab. Only the enterprise owner can grant access to the Go Account wallet.

"We see you have specified [EMAIL] as your BitGo-FTX enterprise owner. Hence, to complete the KYC, please have [EMAIL] logs in to activate your Go Account under the Trade tab at BitGo dashboard" (ticket #99025)

"Noted that Jaehwan - [EMAIL] is no longer with the company. Do you still have access to [EMAIL]'s mailbox and BitGo account? As currently this account is the sole enterprise owner, the account will need to log in to BitGo to add any new enterprise owner." (ticket #108889)

Scenario: kyc-ftx-process-claim#registered-via-wrong-path-not-ftx-linked

Trigger: Customer completed KYC for a general BitGo account rather than through the FTX distribution flow, and their account is not linked to FTX.

Signals: general account, not FTX distribution, register through FTX portal, select Bitgo as distributor

Steps:

  1. Verify in the admin tool whether the customer's enterprise has source "ftx-retail" or similar FTX designation.
  2. If the enterprise is a standard BitGo starter account (not FTX-linked), inform the customer: "You have completed the KYC for a BitGo general account, not the FTX distribution. To be eligible for the FTX distribution, you need to register through the FTX portal and select BitGo as the distributor."
  3. Direct them to register via the FTX claims portal at https://claims.ftx.com and proceed through the steps to link with BitGo.
  4. Note that all users have an enterprise ID which is unique — this does not mean they are an enterprise/institutional user.

Notes: The FTX Customer Portal email must match the BitGo Distribution Service Provider account email per FTX requirements.

"As we can see, you have completed the KYC for a Bitgo general account, not the FTX distribution. To be eligible for the FTX distribution, you need to register through the FTX portal and select Bitgo as the distributor. By keeping FTX as the source, you will be given the option to complete the KYC process." (ticket #38884)

Scenario: kyc-ftx-process-claim#id-not-in-english-passport-required

Trigger: Customer's government-issued ID is not in English and the KYC team requests an English-translated ID or passport.

Signals: passport, English, translated, ID not in English, cannot be used, notary

Steps:

  1. Inform the customer that the KYC team requires a government-issued photo ID translated into English or a passport.
  2. Provide the Persona verification link if available (request from KYC team if expired).
  3. If the customer cannot provide an English-translated ID, advise: "If you are unable to provide an English-translated ID, we recommend reaching out to a local notary to have your ID professionally translated."
  4. Confirm that the email from @cases.withpersona.com is legitimate if the customer questions it.

Notes: Some customers from Taiwan, China, Korea, and other non-English-speaking countries may have IDs entirely in their local language. A passport is generally the simplest resolution.

"The address on the ID poses no issues however to complete your onboarding, however we need some additional information. Specifically, we require: A government-issued photo ID translated into English or passport... The ID you provided is not in English and cannot be used. If you are unable to provide an English-translated ID, we recommend reaching out to a local notary to have your ID professionally translated." (ticket #122438)

"We can confirm [EMAIL] is email address or our KYC team and the email is legit. Please reply to the email with the requested information to move your KYC forward." (ticket #97541)

Scenario: kyc-ftx-process-claim#institutional-kyc-jurisdiction-docs-unavailable

Trigger: Institutional customer's jurisdiction does not require audited financials or tax filings, and the KYC form demands them.

Signals: audited financials, tax filings, not required, jurisdiction, Bahamas, Seychelles, BVI, skip

Steps:

  1. Confirm with the customer that their jurisdiction does not require the requested documents.
  2. Advise the customer: "Please create a word/pdf document with a sentence explaining your registered jurisdiction does not require the document to upload into the collector."
  3. Note that the KYC flow has been updated to allow skipping certain documents — a prompt should appear where the customer can enter a detailed reply on why documents do not apply.
  4. If the customer still encounters issues, escalate to the compliance/product ops team.

Notes: This applies to entities in jurisdictions like the Bahamas, Seychelles, BVI, and Cayman Islands where audited financials and tax filings may not be mandatory.

"We confirmed with the FTX team that in situations like yours, you do not have to provide the documents as specified. To complete the form, please create a word/pdf document with a sentence explaining your registered jurisdiction does not require the document to upload into the collector." (ticket #90967)

"You should now be able to move forward in this process and skip the submission of certain documents that do not apply. A prompt should be presented where you can enter a detailed reply on why these documents do not apply. The team will then further review." (ticket #90967)

Scenario: kyc-ftx-process-claim#technical-error-oops-something-went-wrong

Trigger: Customer encounters "Oops! Something went wrong when fetching your inquiry" or similar technical error when trying to start or continue KYC.

Signals: oops, something went wrong, fetching your inquiry, error, technical issue, bug, cannot start KYC

Steps:

  1. Ask the customer for a screenshot of the full screen showing the error.
  2. Check the Persona dashboard for the customer's inquiry status.
  3. If the inquiry has failed or is stuck, escalate to the Product Ops / Engineering team via the internal FTX Slack channel to reset the KYC submission.
  4. Once reset, inform the customer: "The next time you login, you're going to get prompted to resubmit your information."
  5. If the issue was a known platform bug (e.g., country-specific workflow limitation), confirm it has been resolved and provide the re-submission link: https://go.bitgo.info/ftx-kyc

Notes: Historical issues included country-of-origin restrictions in the Persona workflow that have since been resolved. If the customer reports a BVI address error ("We are unable to verify identities in this country"), advise them to choose GB as the country for the ID.

"I have checked our internal system and found that your claim process has failed. This might be caused by the technical error if you have never initiated the process, therefore i have reset the KYC submission for you. I kindly ask you to attempt the process once more, as the technical problem has been successfully resolved." (ticket #119058)

"Upon review of your case, we have concluded that there were some technical limitations imposed within our FTX Creditor Workflow as a result of the country of origin of your specific Enterprise. Fortunately, this issue has now been resolved within our platform but we must kindly request that you re-submit your claim through the designated portal." (ticket #125153)

Scenario: kyc-ftx-process-claim#periodic-review-required

Trigger: Customer received an "Action Required" email about periodic review for FTX distribution but cannot find the notification badge or periodic review button.

Signals: periodic review, notification badge, action required, additional information, app.bitgo.com

Steps:

  1. Confirm the customer's account in the admin tool and check if a periodic review has been triggered.
  2. Instruct the customer: "Please log in at app.bitgo.com with your existing credentials, click on the notification badge, and begin the 'Periodic Review'."
  3. If no notification badge is visible, check with the compliance team whether the review has already been completed or if there is a system issue.
  4. After completion, inform the customer they will receive an email notification to log back in to attest to the terms of service. Their status in the FTX Portal will not show as "Ready for Distribution" until they complete the terms of service attestation.
  5. Advise to allow 5 days for the initial review of information to be conducted.
  6. For questions about the periodic review process specifically, the original email directed customers to periodicreview@bitgo.com, but if that bounces, route through support@bitgo.com.

Notes: The customer may be emailed by the KYC team (from @cases.withpersona.com) upon review if additional information is needed.

"Please log in at app.bitgo.com with your existing credentials, click on the notification badge, and begin the 'Periodic Review'... After completion, you will receive an email notification to log back in to attest to the terms of service. Your status in the FTX Portal will not show as Ready for Distribution until you complete the terms of service attestation. Please allow 5 days for the initial review of information to be conducted, and you may be emailed by [EMAIL] upon review." (ticket #30376)

Scenario: kyc-ftx-process-claim#under-review-ftx-shows-not-started

Trigger: Customer's BitGo KYC shows "Under Review" but the FTX claims portal shows "Not Started" or "KYC Status: Not Started."

Signals: under review, not started, FTX portal, discrepancy, sync, status mismatch

Steps:

  1. Confirm in the admin tool that the customer's KYC submission has been received and is under review.
  2. Reassure the customer: "If you see the status as 'Under Review' on BitGo and 'Not Started Yet' on the FTX portal please do not worry. The FTX Portal running behind in matching the current status of BitGo on their platform and their engineering team is working on the fix. As long as you see the status as 'Under Review' on BitGo you have met the FTX claim submission deadline."
  3. Inform the customer that BitGo is unable to expedite any specific review or the claim issuing process.
  4. Direct the customer to FTX support for portal-side status discrepancies.

Notes: This was a widespread issue especially during 2023 claim deadlines. The FTX portal status updates may lag behind BitGo's actual KYC status.

"As we work through your KYC information, we'll update your status via email. We are working with the FTX team to add KYC Status in the claims portal in the upcoming weeks and months." (ticket #109121)

"If you see that status as 'Under Review' on BitGo and 'Not Started Yet' on the FTX portal please do not worry. The FTX Portal running behind in matching the current status of BitGo on their platform and their engineering team is working on the fix. As long as you see the stars as 'Under Review' on BitGo you have met the FTX claim submission deadline." (ticket #110151)

Scenario: kyc-ftx-process-claim#activate-go-account-for-distribution

Trigger: Customer's KYC is approved but they have not activated their Go Account, which is required to receive FTX claim distributions.

Signals: Go Account, Trade tab, Start Trading, activate, distribution wallet

Steps:

  1. Confirm KYC is approved in the admin tool.
  2. Instruct the customer: "Please activate your Go Account via the Trade tab > Start Trading and complete the process."
  3. Explain that once completed, this will create the Go Account wallet for their FTX claims to use.
  4. If the customer wants to add bank account details for fiat withdrawal, direct them to the Banking tab of the Go Account.
  5. If the customer cannot see the Trade tab or encounters an error, verify that they are logged in as the enterprise owner or have been granted appropriate access.

Notes: The Go Account is separate from standard BitGo wallets. Bank account details are added at the Banking tab of the Go Account, not elsewhere in the platform.

"You can activate your Go Account via Trade Tab > Start Trading and complete the process. Once this has been completed, this will create the Go Account wallet for your FTX claims to use." (ticket #107594)

"Claim will be disbursed to your Go Account so please activate your Go Account under the Trade tab at BitGo dashboard if you have not do so." (ticket #128149)

Scenario: kyc-ftx-process-claim#expired-persona-link

Trigger: Customer reports that the Persona KYC verification link has expired (links expire after 24 hours).

Signals: expired, link expired, 24 hours, resend link, withpersona.com, new link

Steps:

  1. Confirm that the customer's Persona link has indeed expired.
  2. Request the KYC/operations team to resend a new Persona verification link via the internal FTX Slack channel or by escalating to the compliance team.
  3. Inform the customer: "We have informed the team to resend the link. Please allow us some time, and we will get back to you shortly."
  4. Once the new link is sent, confirm with the customer and advise them to complete it promptly before it expires again.

Notes: Persona verification links typically expire within 24 hours. Customers should be advised to complete the verification as soon as they receive the link.

"I do have a KYC link in my email. But that was sent to me on January 8, 2025. The link already expired after 24 hours for getting the mail. According to the inquiry from the Help Center, we need to ask the official staff to send the new link again." (ticket #123909)

Related

  • individual-know-your-customer-kyc — Covers the general BitGo KYC verification process steps and document requirements
  • video-verification-overview — Related to identity verification processes for enterprise accounts
  • none identified for FTX-specific distribution mechanics (handled by FTX support)