Singapore crypto dealer Hodlnaut suspends withdrawals

Hodlnaut Singapore
FILE PHOTO: Representations of the Ripple, Bitcoin, Etherum and Litecoin virtual currencies are seen on a PC motherboard in this illustration picture, February 14, 2018. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

HONG KONG (Reuters) -Hodlnaut, a Singapore-based cryptocurrency lender and borrower, has suspended withdrawals, swaps and deposits, the company said on Monday, the latest sign of stress in the cryptocurrency industry.

The crypto lender also said it would withdraw its application for a licence from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to provide digital token payment services, for which it received in-principle approval in March.

Hodlnaut said the move was “due to recent market conditions” and was “to focus on stabilising our liquidity and preserving assets”.

Latest crypto player to run into difficulty

The company is the latest in a string of crypto players globally to run into difficulties following a sharp sell-off in markets that started in May with the collapse of two paired tokens, Luna and TerraUSD.

Other high-profile failures include US crypto lender Celsius, and Singapore-based fund Three Arrows Capital, both of which filed for bankruptcy last month.

Hodlnaut was named as one of Celsius’ institutional clients, according to court filings.

Singapore a major crypto centre

Singapore, a major centre for crypto and blockchain in Asia, has seen several crypto companies run into difficulties in recent months.

Vauld, a Singapore-based crypto lending and trading platform, suspended withdrawals in early July, and later that month, Zipmex, a Southeast Asia-focused crypto exchange, suspended withdrawals, though has since resumed them for some products.

Hodlnaut and the MAS did not immediately respond to requests for comment sent outside office hours.

(Reporting by Alun John in Hong Kong, Chen Lin in Singapore and Elizabeth Howcroft in London; Editing by Toby Chopra)

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