Adoptees: Read This Before You Delete Your 23andMe DNA

On March 23, 2025, the commercial DNA testing platform 23andMe announced that it is voluntarily filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy—which allows the company to restructure its finances with the goals of continuing operations and achieving financial stability. Naturally, this has led many to question the future security of their genetic data and the media online has only stoked fear and panic. For adoptees who are searching for biological relatives, this is a devastating and confusing development.

But don’t delete your data just yet...

For countless people, 23andMe has played a vital role in their roots journeys. In fact, more international Chinese adoptees have tested with 23andMe than any other company in the world. As a result, no other database has made more reunions between Chinese adoptees who were adopted abroad and their adopted siblings and cousins than 23andMe has.

Nanchang Project uses 23andMe for birth families and we will continue for the foreseeable future. Additionally, we add our birth families to GEDmatch, MyHeritage, and FTDNA to increase the likelihood of a match.

23andMe is soliciting a buyer for the company. Did you know that it is the only major DNA database that has not been sold before?

Blackstone Group acquired AncestryDNA, the largest DNA database in the world, in 2020

• Francisco Partners acquired MyHeritage in 2021

• myDNA acquired FamilyTreeDNA in 2021

• Verogen + its subsidiary Qiagen acquired GEDmatch in 2019 and 2023, respectively

Anne Wojcicki, the founder of 23andMe, resigned from her role as CEO specifically so she can bid to purchase 23andMe. This would be an ideal situation, as would another popular commercial DNA company taking it over and potentially combining databases.

So, what should we do?

While we are in a “wait and see” period, Nanchang Project (NCPT) advises adoptees to remain calm and not delete your DNA profile in a panic. Nothing has changed with the actual operations or security of the database.

We are patiently waiting to see who may become the new owner of 23andMe. This restructuring may take months or even longer, so there is no urgency at this point in time.

We at NCPT do, however, suggest that 23andMe users (especially adoptees) download a copy of their raw data and begin uploading this file to other databases as a backup measure—and to increase the chances of a match! We highly recommend all adoptees utilize the free databases GEDmatch and MyHeritage at minimum, as both of these have reunited many Chinese adoptees who were not in 23andMe.

How to download raw data files from 23andMe:

• Log into your 23andMe account

• Click your Profile icon

• Select “Settings”

• Scroll to “23andMe Data” section at bottom of the page

• Click “View”

• Verify your birthdate

• Select “Submit request”

• It can take 2-4 days or longer for the file to be emailed to you for download

To read about all testing options tailored to Chinese adoptees: Nanchang Project DNA Testing page.

For directions downloading raw data from any company + see our GEDmatch Mini Guide: Nanchang Project Resources page.

For further reading about 23andMe: The DNA Geek and Questions related to 23andMe's Chapter 11 Filing.

Ultimately, what you do with your DNA is your personal decision. We hope that this post has been able to provide you with useful information and clarity. If you have further questions, feel free to leave a comment, message us, or send an email: hello@nanchangproject.com.

Nanchang Project is proudly led by Chinese adoptees for Chinese adoptees. We have made 10 matches in 23andMe between November 2024 and March 2025, and we have dozens more birth families processing right now.