Skip to main content

Crypto lender Hodlnaut follows other firms in freezing withdrawals

Crypto lender Hodlnaut follows other firms in freezing withdrawals

/

Hodlnaut’s pausing withdrawals, deposits, and token swaps

Share this story

A coin is set aflame to reveal a digital wireframe underneath.
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Cryptocurrency lender Hodlnaut is the latest firm to respond to tumultuous market conditions by halting withdrawals (via Coindesk). In a post on its website, the Singapore-based company announced that it’s freezing withdrawals, token swaps, and deposits due to an uncertain economy that some say triggered a “crypto winter.”

Hodlnaut is also rescinding its application to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) for a regulatory license that would allow the company to offer digital payment token services in the city-state. As pointed out by Coindesk, the firm already received in-principle approval for the license in March, and its withdrawal means it can no longer offer token swaps. Hodlnaut says it’s also suspending its borrowing and lending services “for the avoidance of doubt.”

The crash of Terra USD in May set off a ripple effect across the entire crypto industry, with last month’s collapse of crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital pushing the embattled Voyager Digital and Celsius Network into bankruptcy, and other crypto firms, like Babel Finance and Vauld, moving to halt withdrawals. A bankruptcy filing spotted by Reuters lists Hodlnaut as one of Celsius’ institutional clients.

According to Crunchbase, Hodlnaut has over $500 million in assets under management. The company says it’s working with a Singaporean legal firm to come up with a new strategy and will provide an update to customers on August 19th.

“This difficult decision was taken for us to focus on stabilising our liquidity and preserving assets, while we work to find the best way to protect our users’ long-term interests,” Hodlnaut states. “We are actively working on the recovery plan that we hope to provide updates and details on as soon as permissible.”