Coinbase-backed Vauld seeks 4 months more on moratorium as recast talks continue

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Troubled cryptocurrency lending platform Vauld’s parent Defi Payments has filed an application in a Singapore Court seeking a four-month extension of its moratorium till March 7, 2023.

The Coinbase-backed start-up’s earlier three-month deadline for moratorium was to end on November 7, 2022.

The application for the extension will be argued on ground of its creditors or the Committee of Creditors (CoC) Vauld had initiated, still evaluating the restructuring plan. Defi Payments is also planning to run a “suitable voting process and make the necessary court applications”. Discussions London-based crypto lender Nexo for a “potential investment” continued in the meanwhile.

"We would like to update everyone that on October 18, 2022, Defi Payments filed an application in the Singapore Court seeking a four-month extension of the moratorium up to and including March 7, 2023 (the Extension Application)," an email sent out to its customers said. The email was reviewed by Moneycontrol.

Since July 5, Vauld had suspended its withdrawals and operations citing financial troubles. This was followed by a raid from Enforcement Directorate (ED) which froze its bank balances, payment gateway balances and crypto balances worth Rs 370 crore for allegedly aiding predatory lending apps.

Amid all this, the company had found a way out when it announced that Nexo would likely acquire it. Nexo was in the process of conducting its due diligence over a given time frame of 60 days, which it is now extending by another 30 days.

“The 60-day exclusivity period previously agreed with Nexo to conduct due diligence in relation to the potential acquisition has been extended for a period of a further 30 days from today. This is because more time is required for the due diligence process,” Vauld told its creditors in another email accessed by Moneycontrol.

“Our discussions with Nexo remain ongoing. The Vauld management team is continuing to work closely with Nexo throughout the process. We will continue to share relevant material updates with you going forward in relation to the investor talks.”

As of July, Vauld had assets worth around $330 million and liabilities worth $400 million.

Vauld was founded in 2018 by Darshan Bathija and Sanju Kurian to enable crypto investors earn and borrow cryptocurrencies using their own assets.

The start-up is backed by popular investors including Coinbase Ventures, PayPal co-founder and billionaire investor Peter Thiel's Valar Ventures, CMT Digital, Gumi Cryptos, Robert Leshner and Cadenza Capital.