Can Decentralization Be Shut Down?

I recently saw a curious reply in a community of an exchange offering both CEX and DEX modes. You can see it on the screenshot.

My reaction? A Connect Wallet button doesn’t make a service decentralized!

A similar misunderstanding appears on hecoscan.io, which just announced the shutdown of the HECO blockchain on January 15, 2025. HECO has long marketed itself as a decentralized public chain. But can a truly decentralized blockchain be “shut down” by an announcement?

Imagine if Bitcoin developers claimed its blockchain would stop in 2025. Miners wouldn’t care - they earn rewards regardless of developers. Users wouldn’t stop transacting either. Decentralized networks don’t have an “Off” button.

However, in HECO’s case, it seems likely that validators will halt operations and users will follow suit.

If the blockchain defies expectations and continues, HT coins on HECO might return to rabbit.io. For now, though, none of our liquidity providers are accepting them.