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In July, we started hearing rumors that Hodlnaut, a crypto lending platform, had gotten mixed up in the Terrapocalypse. It seemed hard to believe – Hodlnaut held a license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore. These guys were legit, right?
Our attempts to answer that question led us on a long trip down the crypto rabbit hole, trying to recreate what happened based on the transactions of anonymous accounts.
Thanks to the initial sleuthing of people like FatManTerra and Die_Nub_Plz, we had enough to start our research. With the help of crypto intelligence firm Nansen, we were able to write that Hodlnaut, despite its claims, had over US$187 million in Terra’s Anchor Protocol when UST crumbled.
I was proud of that US$187 million figure – it was our math. That figure now appears across the internet. We even made it to The Washington Post.
So when Hodlnaut filed its statement with the Singapore courts, which is the subject of today’s Big Story, I was surprised to see that the company’s exposure was US$317 million. I went back to my notes.
The sound you hear is me banging my head against a wall. Just a few hours before the story was published, our headline had read US$317 million. We changed it because Hodlnaut had pulled US$130 million in UST from Anchor just a few days before the collapse, and we weren’t sure if the company was still holding it.
Now we know that they were. Our math was right.
– Scott
THE BIG STORY
UST, lies, and Hodlnaut: how a rising star fell back to earth
Image credit: Timmy Loen
From rising crypto star to fighting for its life in a Singaporean courtroom, Hodlnaut’s descent has been brutal. It’s hard to believe that the once-licensed firm held more than US$500 million in assets just over a year ago. We look at where the company went wrong and what chance they have of rebuilding.
⭐ TO THE STARS
A look at what’s pushing Web3 forward
🌙 TO THE MOON
🌏 BACK TO EARTH
STILL A PONZI SCHEME
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