In General
Blockchain congestion occurs when there are too many transactions being broadcast to the network for a coin/token, exceeding the network's capacity to process them. This can result in transactions being delayed or even orphaned.
↪ What is an orphaned transaction?
Since each coin/token has its own blockchain network, this is unfortunately something that Bittrex Global has no control over, so please hang tight until the issue is resolved.
Congestion on the Ethereum Network
The Ethereum network is unique in that it uses gas to fuel transactions.
When Bittrex Global detects blockchain congestion on the Ethereum network, we take additional precaution to prevent orphaned transactions by taking the wallet offline. Once the congestion has cleared, we bring the wallet back online.
This typically happens when there is a crowdfund and many people are donating coins, which increases the gas price of all transactions on the network. This traffic leads to slower processing for wallets, which also affects the Bittrex Global Ethereum wallet.
Here are a couple of scenarios we have seen with Ethereum transactions during blockchain congestion, and how to handle them:
Don't panic! Please be patient while we work to bring the wallet back online. Once the wallet is back online, your transaction should process as long as it was on the Ethereum network and a transaction ID was created.
Go to the Holdings page in your Bittrex Global account and copy the transaction ID from the Withdrawal History section, and search for it on one of the many Ethereum block explorers:
If the transaction cannot be found it may have orphaned. In this case, please contact Bittrex Global Support and be sure to include the wallet address for the receiving end and the transaction ID so we can investigate.