Babel Finance, one of Asia’s largest crypto lenders, suspends withdrawals and payments

The crypto-finance provider Babel Finance said it was suspending payments and withdrawals from its own products due to liquidity shortages. говорится on the site.

“Recently there has been significant volatility in the cryptocurrency market […]. Due to the current situation, Babel Finance faced an unusual liquidity shortage,” the company said.

Babel Finance is one of the largest cryptocurrency lenders and asset managers in the Asia-Pacific region.

As of the end of 2021 the firm reported an outstanding loan balance of more than $3 billion, with an average monthly trading volume of crypto-derivative products amounting to $800 million.

In May 2021, the firm raised $40 million in a Series A round. Since then the Babel Finance team has grown from 50 people to more than 170.

In September the company opened its headquarters in Singapore. The unit was led by former Bank of Singapore employee Shanshan Yu.

In May 2022 the firm closed a Series B round of $80 million at a $2 billion valuation. Leading investors were Jeneration Capital and 10T Holdings with participation from Circle Ventures, several Southeast Asian family offices and existing shareholders Dragonfly Capital and BAI Capital.

Earlier in June the Celsius crypto-lending platform suspended withdrawals, exchanges and transfers between accounts due to “extreme market conditions”.

On June 15, The Wall Street Journal reported that Celsius hired lawyers from the law firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld для возможной финансовой реструктуризации.

Journalists emphasised that the platform’s original aim was to attract capital from investors. According to The Block, to address this task the company turned to the financial conglomerate Citigroup.

Earlier, an expert called Celsius’ bankruptcy practically inevitable, and WSJ sources said that investment firm WestCap and the Caisse de dépôt et Placement du Québec pension fund will refrain from making new investments in the crypto-lending platform.

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