diff --git a/apps/ios/SimpleXChat/API.swift b/apps/ios/SimpleXChat/API.swift
index cdd1008c13..e2f4adc60f 100644
--- a/apps/ios/SimpleXChat/API.swift
+++ b/apps/ios/SimpleXChat/API.swift
@@ -87,6 +87,11 @@ public func chatInitControllerRemovingDatabases() {
 
 
 public func chatCloseStore() {
+    // Prevent crash when exiting the app with already closed store (for example, after changing a database passpharase)
+    guard hasChatCtrl() else {
+        logger.error("chatCloseStore: already closed, chatCtrl is nil")
+        return
+    }
     let err = fromCString(chat_close_store(getChatCtrl()))
     if err != "" {
         logger.error("chatCloseStore error: \(err)")