Cryptocurrency payments platform Wyre shuts down operations

Cryptocurrency payments platform Wyre shuts down operations

Time Stamp: June 19, 2023 12:00 AM
Cryptocurrency payments platform Wyre shuts down operations PlatoBlockchain Data Intelligence. Vertical Search. Ai.
  • Cryptocurrency payment platform Wyre has closed its operations after nearly a decade in business
  • The firm urged users with assets on its platform to withdraw them via Wyre’s dashboard until Friday, July 14th.
  • Wyre has joined a growing list of crypto and blockchain companies that have struggled and ultimately succumbed

San Francisco-based cryptocurrency payments firm Wyre has recently shut down its operations. This comes after nearly ten years in business. The company cited financial challenges stemming from the bear market as the primary reason for its closure, emphasizing that it did not correlate with the regulatory environment in the United States.

In a blog post released on June 16, Wyre announced that it had made the difficult choice to wind down its operations to safeguard the best interests of its key stakeholders and customers. The company assured its users that their assets would remain secure during the process, providing instructions for withdrawing assets through Wyre’s dashboard until Friday, July 14th. After that date, a separate procedure would be implemented to facilitate the recovery of any remaining assets on the platform.

Wyre also revealed that its assets were currently available for sale, welcoming inquiries from interested parties interested in acquiring Wyre’s assets or its subsidiaries. They were advised to contact 88 Partners for further details.

READ: Exploring paths to retrieve stolen bitcoin from cryptocurrency scams

The challenges for Wyre began when Bolt, a one-click checkout company, cancelled its plans to acquire Wyre for $1.5 billion in September 2022. This setback dealt a significant blow to Wyre’s trajectory and prospects. Following this, in January 2023, concerns surrounding Wyre’s custodial partner prompted Juno, a fiat-to-crypto on-ramp solution provider, to urge its users to withdraw their crypto assets from the Juno platform and take custody of them independently due to perceived uncertainty. Around the same time, MetaMask also ceased its support for Wyre’s crypto payment services, compounding the challenges faced by the company.

In response to these events, Wyre implemented a 90% withdrawal limit for all its users, which created additional complications. However, the company reversed this decision on January 13 after securing financing from an undisclosed strategic partner. This development suggested a potential path to recovery for Wyre. Nonetheless, the company had to make difficult choices and restructure its workforce, resulting in the unfortunate layoff of 75 employees in January.

Wyre’s closure adds to the growing list of crypto and blockchain companies that have struggled and ultimately succumbed to the pressures of the bear market. In May alone, several prominent firms and projects met a similar fate. These included Unbanked, a crypto fintech firm; BottlePay, a Lightning Network payments platform; HotBit, a crypto exchange; Terressa, a nonfungible token platform; and TradeBlock, Digital Currency Group’s institutional trading platform.

Despite the challenges Wyre and other entities face in the cryptocurrency industry, it is crucial to recognize the dynamic nature of the market. While some companies may encounter difficulties, new opportunities and innovations continue to emerge. The cryptocurrency landscape is resilient and adaptive, paving the way for future advancements and growth in the industry.

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