Douniu was a sneaker platform where users could buy but could not withdraw — it collapsed

Douniu (斗牛, also known as DoNew) was one of China's earliest sneaker resale platforms, riding the 2017–2019 sneaker speculation wave. The platform was operated by Shanghai Zali E-commerce, founded in August 2015. In May 2019, Douniu raised nearly $10 million in Series A funding, positioning itself as a top contender alongside Poizon, Nice, and YOHO.

The collapse was sudden. By October 2019, user complaints flooded social media: Douniu had changed its transaction rules arbitrarily, delayed shipments, refused refunds, and most critically — frozen user withdrawals. One user reported being unable to withdraw ¥13,780. The platform would cancel orders claiming 'no shoes available,' issue minimal compensation of ¥168, then freeze the buyer's own money when they tried to withdraw it.

Shanghai's 12345 citizen hotline received a flood of Douniu complaints. The platform effectively collapsed in late 2019, unable to process withdrawals or fulfill orders. Douniu was not formally declared bankrupt, but it was dead — the app stopped functioning, users could not access their funds, and the platform that had raised $10M nine months earlier was gone within the year.