Loopring DEX Shuts Down Trading As Relayer Goes Offline

Loopring DEX has ceased all trading services, closing one of Ethereum’s earliest zkRollup trading projects after years of limited adoption and rising competition from newer Layer 2 systems.

The shutdown took effect immediately, and the relayer that processed Loopring DEX activity has been taken offline. The move ends active trading on the DEX rather than setting a future wind-down date, making the user asset return process the main remaining priority.

Loopring framed the closure around structural limits in its original architecture. The project was built before modern zkEVM systems became the dominant zero-knowledge scaling model, and its specialized design lacked a virtual machine, broader Ethereum smart contract compatibility and the composability needed to support a larger DeFi ecosystem.

The team also pointed to weak business development and exchange delistings as factors that accelerated the decision. LRC was among the assets removed when Binance set an April spot delisting for several tokens, cutting off a major liquidity channel for the token earlier this year.

User Balances Will Be Returned To L1 Wallets

Loopring is moving to a direct asset distribution model instead of asking users to generate and submit Merkle proofs themselves. Final Loopring L2 balances are scheduled to be published in the coming days through a downloadable list shared on X.

The balance list will include spot balances in ETH and ERC-20 tokens. AMM liquidity positions will be converted into their underlying token equivalents at the time of shutdown, so users will not need to redeem LP positions manually before distribution.

The process also includes a smart contract upgrade for centralized distribution. The upgraded contract will only allow whitelisted addresses controlled by Loopring to move assets out of the L2 system, allowing batch payments while limiting interference during the return process.

Loopring acknowledged that this route is more centralized than the original self-custody exit mechanism. The project chose the centralized distribution route to avoid forcing users through proof generation, onchain submissions, gas payments or technical withdrawal steps.

Two-Week Review Comes Before Batch Payments

The final balance list will remain public for a two-week review period. Users will be able to check their balances and contact Loopring support after the list is published, with help requests routed through [email protected] once the support address becomes active.

Batch distributions will begin after the review period ends. Assets will be sent directly to each user’s Ethereum L1 wallet address, using the address tied to the user’s Loopring L2 account. Loopring will cover transaction costs for the distribution.

Only accounts with a final balance worth at least $10 will be included. Smaller balances will be excluded from the batch distribution, a threshold the project set to keep the process operationally efficient.