CTRL Wallet, known until 2024 as XDEFI Wallet, permanently shut down on August 19, 2026. If you still had crypto in it, here's the most important thing to know: your crypto didn't go anywhere. It's still on the blockchains, at the same addresses. CTRL was a self-custody wallet, so the app was only ever a way to reach it. What you need now is your recovery phrase, or failing that, the encrypted wallet CTRL left on your computer.
This guide covers what happened, how to move your funds, and what to do if you've lost your phrase or forgotten your password. We recover crypto wallets for a living, so we'll tell you what's realistic.
What happened to CTRL Wallet?
- 2020–2021: XDEFI Wallet is founded and launches publicly as a multi-chain browser extension, later adding mobile apps.
- 2024: XDEFI rebrands to CTRL Wallet. Existing extensions update automatically. (The separate $XDEFI to $CTRL token swap was a different event.)
- April 2026: CTRL announces a move under EMURGO, the company behind the Cardano wallet Yoroi (now SecondFi).
- June 23, 2026: CTRL reports a security issue affecting some Cardano wallets and goes into maintenance mode. A separate SecondFi/Yoroi vulnerability around the same time drained a large amount of ADA; those losses belong to SecondFi, not CTRL.
- July 7, 2026: CTRL announces it will close. From August 3, installed wallets lose sending, receiving, swaps, and dApp connections, but can still show your recovery phrase.
- August 19, 2026: CTRL shuts down permanently. Its website now tells users to import their recovery phrase into another compatible wallet.
Most news coverage gave August 3 as the shutdown date, because that's when the features were cut. Some outlets also said funds would be unrecoverable after that. That isn't true for anyone who still has the recovery phrase or the encrypted wallet.
If you have your recovery phrase: import it into a CTRL alternative
This is the straightforward case. Your 12- or 24-word recovery phrase controls every account CTRL created from it, on every chain.
- Pick a maintained wallet that supports your chains. CTRL supported a long list of networks (Bitcoin, Ethereum and EVM chains, Solana, Cosmos, THORChain, Tron, Cardano, and more). Not every wallet covers all of them, so you may need more than one. CTRL itself pointed users to wallets such as MetaMask, Trust Wallet, and Phantom. Funds on Cosmos chains may need a Cosmos wallet such as Keplr, and Cardano funds a Cardano wallet.
- Import your phrase using that wallet's "import" or "restore" option.
- Check the addresses. Compare the addresses the new wallet shows with your old CTRL addresses. If something looks empty, see the next section.
Never type your phrase into a website that claims to "migrate" CTRL wallets. Only enter it into a wallet app you installed from its official source.
Imported your phrase, but something's missing?
Usually nothing is lost:
- A different derivation path or account. Wallets don't all generate the same addresses from the same words. Look for an option to scan more accounts or choose a different derivation path, especially for Cosmos chains, Cardano, and Solana.
- Accounts that never came from your phrase. If you imported a private key into CTRL, or connected a Ledger or Trezor, those accounts don't come back with your phrase. You need that private key or that hardware wallet.
- Social sign-in accounts. CTRL's final update only shows the recovery phrase for wallets created with a seed phrase, so it offers no export for social-login accounts. Contact EMURGO, which took over CTRL, through its official channels.
- A wrong phrase that still passed. A mistyped word occasionally still produces a valid phrase that opens an empty wallet. Check every word.
Lost your phrase, but CTRL is still installed?
If CTRL or XDEFI is still installed in your browser, it has probably updated itself to CTRL's final version. That version can't send or swap; it only shows the recovery phrase for wallets created with a seed phrase. A missing send button is expected and doesn't mean your wallet is gone. If you know the password, open it and write the phrase down.
If you've forgotten the password, don't give up, and don't remove anything:
- Don't uninstall the extension, clear your browser data, or reset the browser. The encrypted wallet lives in that browser profile. CTRL's final version is still in the Chrome Web Store, but it can't create or import wallets, so a fresh install comes up empty, and the old wallet is gone for good.
- Don't use any "forgot password", "reset", or "restore" option inside CTRL. XDEFI's own fix for a forgotten password was to start over and re-import, which replaces the encrypted wallet.
- Look for an old XDEFI backup file. XDEFI let you export a password-protected backup of all your wallets as a file. If you saved one, keep it safe.
- Don't wipe or sell the computer that had CTRL on it.
That encrypted wallet, or that backup file, is locked by your password alone, and a locked file can be worked on offline. Crypto Asset Recovery recovers passwords for CTRL and XDEFI encrypted wallets and backups. You send us the encrypted file and your best password guesses, and we run the cracking on offline, air-gapped machines. When we find the password, you get your recovery phrase back. You only pay if we succeed.
For help building a list of password guesses, see our guide on how to find old passwords.
If you only ever used CTRL on your phone, contact us anyway, but we can't promise anything: getting an encrypted wallet off a phone is a different problem, and we look at those case by case.
Have part of your phrase?
If you wrote your phrase down but a word is missing, misspelled, or the phrase won't import, it's often fixable. Standard recovery phrases have a built-in checksum, so a single missing word leaves only a small number of valid possibilities to test against an address you know held funds. Two missing words is a bigger search, but still very winnable.
Crypto Asset Recovery reconstructs incomplete and invalid recovery phrases offline. Seed recovery means working with the words you still have, so you'll share your partial phrase with us. Only send it to a recovery service you've verified, never to anyone who contacts you first. For more on how this works, see our guide to recovering a seed phrase with a missing word.
When recovery isn't possible
With no recovery phrase, no private key, no hardware wallet, no installed extension, and no backup file, there's nothing left to recover from. CTRL can't regenerate your phrase, and neither can anyone else. We'd rather tell you that plainly than sell you false hope.
Beware of shutdown scams
Wallet shutdowns attract scammers. Watch for:
- Fake "migration" sites that ask for your recovery phrase to move your funds.
- Fake refunds, compensation, or airdrops. CTRL said there was no closure-related token or airdrop.
- Fake support reaching out by DM, email, or phone. CTRL never asked for your recovery phrase, and nobody legitimate will.
If your funds were stolen, we don't recover stolen crypto, but we can refer you to a partner who investigates theft.
Why Choose Crypto Asset Recovery to Recover Your CTRL Wallet?
- Secure, offline recovery. The cracking runs on air-gapped, offline machines, so your keys are never exposed online.
- We support CTRL and XDEFI wallets and backups, alongside MetaMask, Trust Wallet, Keplr, and more.
- Success-based pricing. You only pay if we get you back in.
- Talk to a real person. Reach out any time, and you can get on a Zoom with our founders, the father-and-son team Chris and Charles.
- Featured in BBC, Forbes, Vice, The Block, and Business Insider.
Frequently asked questions
Is my crypto gone now that CTRL shut down? No. Your crypto is on the blockchains, not in the CTRL app. Anyone with your recovery phrase (or the right private key) can still access it from another wallet.
Are XDEFI and CTRL the same wallet? Yes. XDEFI Wallet rebranded to CTRL Wallet in 2024, and existing XDEFI extensions updated automatically. An old XDEFI backup works the same way as a CTRL one.
Which wallet should I import my CTRL recovery phrase into? Any maintained wallet that supports the chains you used. Because CTRL supported so many networks, you may need more than one. Install it from the official website or app store, never from a link someone sends you.
I forgot my CTRL password and lost my recovery phrase. Is there any hope? Possibly, if CTRL is still installed in your browser or you saved an XDEFI backup file. The encrypted wallet can be tested against your password guesses offline. Don't uninstall the extension or clear your browser data.
Did the CTRL Cardano incident affect my wallet? CTRL reported a security issue affecting some Cardano wallets in June 2026, but it hasn't published how many were affected. A separate SecondFi/Yoroi incident caused the large ADA losses reported around the same time. If your funds were taken, we can refer you to a partner who investigates theft.
Is there an official CTRL migration tool or airdrop? CTRL said there was no closure-related token or airdrop. Treat any "migration" site that asks for your recovery phrase as a scam.
