Crypto Lender Hodlnaut Freezes Withdrawals, Citing Market Conditions

Cryptocurrency lending platform Hodlnaut has frozen withdrawals, deposits and token swaps because of "difficult market conditions," the firm said on Monday.

• The Singapore-based firm, which was founded in 2019, said it wants to stabilize liquidity and preserve assets while it works on a long-term solution.

• Hodlnaut also withdrew its application to the Monetary Authority of Singapore for a license in the city-state, even though it received in-principle approval from the central bank in March.

• The company is the latest in a line of crypto lenders that have buckled under market pressure this year, with Celsius Network and Voyager Digital both filing for bankruptcy protection. The total crypto market cap has slumped to about $1 trillion from more than $3 trillion in November.

• One of the key components of the market downturn was the collapse of crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital, which had billions of dollars of exposure to numerous companies in the crypto universe.

• Hodlnaut announced in June that it had "no exposure or loans" with Three Arrows Capital or Celsius.

• The company is consulting with Singapore-based law firm Damodara Ong on a timeline for a plan to preserve user assets.

• Hodlnaut will issue an update on Aug. 19.

• In March of last year, Hodlnaut formed a partnership with Nexus Mutual, an insurance company that specializes in decentralized finance.

• The firm's LinkedIn page states that it has more than $500 million in assets under management.

UPDATE (Aug. 8, 11:15 UTC): Adds AUM figure, partnership with Nexus Mutual.

UPDATE (Aug. 8, 13:45 UTC): Adds in-principle approval granted in March, June statement on Three Arrows, Celsius.