bitFlyer Will Not Credit Bitcoin (BTC) Fork Token ECX Ahead of October 30 Split

bitFlyer Rules Out ECX Distribution

bitFlyer said on October 15, 2026 that it will not credit customers with eCash (ECX), the new asset scheduled to split away from the Bitcoin (BTC) blockchain later this month. In its third announcement on the planned hard fork, a split of a blockchain into two incompatible versions of the ledger, the exchange also ruled out handling ECX on its platform and paying customers a cash equivalent for the token. The decision closes a question bitFlyer had left open for more than two months. Its first notice on the fork, dated August 10, described the distribution plan as “undecided,” and a second notice on August 21 kept that judgment on hold. The new notice is the third in a series the company has published as the fork approached, and it applies the criteria set out in its published hard fork guidelines, the policy document that defines how bitFlyer evaluates splits of the chain. The new ECX is not the same asset as the existing eCash (XEC), an altcoin already traded on other venues, and bitFlyer keeps the two names separate in its customer communications. The fork runs on the proof of work chain that secures Bitcoin (BTC), the mechanism that ties the ledger's validity to real computing cost. bitFlyer paired the ruling with two warnings. Customers who send the new ECX to a BTC receiving address after the fork risk losing those assets outright, because the exchange has no process to recover or convert them. It also told users to watch for scams and phishing that ride on fork news, stating plainly that it never asks customers for private keys or recovery phrases. On the market side, nothing changes: bitFlyer's BTC market, where the Bitcoin (BTC) price forms, stays open through the fork, and the ruling touches only the forked token, not trading in the underlying asset.

Fork Set for Block 973,728

The technical schedule behind the decision is already far along. According to bitFlyer's notice, the alpha and beta versions of the fork have been completed, and the official hard fork is expected around Friday, October 30, 2026, at block height 973,728, a count of the blocks added to the chain through crypto mining. When the split lands, the ledger divides and the new ECX ledger comes into existence, but bitFlyer will not recognize balances on it, list it or convert it into a cash payment for customers. Bitcoin (BTC) services are the other half of the notice. bitFlyer plans to keep BTC trading, deposits and withdrawals running as usual through the fork, so anyone who chooses to HODL coins on the platform keeps full access to buy, sell and move them. The company reserved one exception: if network conditions around the fork require it, BTC deposits and withdrawals may be suspended temporarily to protect customer assets, and users would get a separate notice if that step is taken. Confirmations of deposits and withdrawals may also take longer than usual around the fork window. Fork events of this kind carry transfer risks beyond simple mistakes: a replay attack, in which a transaction valid on one chain is copied onto the other, is a known hazard when a chain splits, one reason exchanges tighten their handling during fork windows. bitFlyer is not alone in the stance. On October 9, Coincheck announced that it likewise does not plan to credit customers with ECX or handle the token on its service, and put the official fork around October 31, Saturday, Japan time. Coincheck also plans to continue BTC trading, deposits and transfers as normal, while flagging the same possibility of temporary suspensions depending on how the network behaves. Both exchanges are therefore holding the same line: existing BTC business runs, the new ECX does not reach customers, and final adjustments depend on conditions around the end of the month.

With Japan's two major crypto exchanges both declining to distribute ECX, most BTC held on domestic platforms will simply never touch the fork asset, and customers who want it would need to move coins to self-custody before block 973,728. For those users, the split becomes a non-event operationally, whatever happens on the chain itself. bitFlyer's stated position does leave room to move: its ECX guidance rests on its hard fork policy, and the company says any change in how it treats the token will be announced to users separately.