I have used Digital Surge (amongst other exchanges too) since I first starting buying crypto, they have a great user interface, very simple and easy to use, immediate AUD transfers in and more recently started an Earn program to earn % on a few select cryptos, using on chain staking only, not lending, to reduce risk.  Unfortunately, they have been caught up in the FTX collapse and I'll discuss here my experiences and what we know so far.

At the beginning of November FTX froze withdrawals as its token (FTT) price crashed and trigger a spike in withdrawals and a liquidity crisis.

On 16th November 2022 Digital Surge users received an email stating deposits and withdrawals were suspended, although trading was still permitted, as they had 'limited exposure' to FTX.  The founders/owners were occasionally engaging via Facebook groups and Telegram chats, but information was vague as to what the 'recovery plans' that were being discussed entailed, and what exactly 'limited exposure' meant.

8th December 2022 we were informed that Digital Surge was going into voluntary administration via deed of company arrangement, and KordaMentha were appointed (https://kordamentha.com/creditors/digital-surge-pty-ltd) as administrators.

At this point all trading was suspended, and a first creditors meeting scheduled for January.  The options are basically, the company could fold and we may receive some % of our funds back, or they can continue to trader under a DOCA, details of which are still not 100% sure, but from documents released it would appear that 'limited' exposure was over 50% of funds being held on FTX.

  Personally, I have only around $1k locked in DS, which was in their Earn program and was an amount I was happy to risk, the rest is off exchanges in a combination of hot and cold wallets, and this is yet another reminder that unless you control your keys, there is always a risk.