Crypto payments firm Wyre cuts withdrawal limits to 90% of funds

Amid insolvency speculations, cryptocurrency payments platform Wyre slashed its withdrawal limits by 10% on Jan. 7. In a Twitter thread, Wyre announced that its customers can now only withdraw up to 90% of the funds in their accounts.

Users will still be subject to daily withdrawal limits, according to which only 5 Bitcoin (BTC) and 50 Ethereum (ETH) can be withdrawn each day. In addition, the daily withdrawal limit for US Dollars and Euros is set at $150,000 and €140,000, respectively.

California-based Wyre claims to be licensed as a money transmitter business across more than 30 states in the US as well as Canada, Australia, European Union, and the UK.

The firm said it is “exploring strategic options” to help it navigate the current market. Yanni Giannaros has stepped down as CEO and will be guiding the firm as executive chairman, Wyre announced.

Chief risk and compliance officer Stephen Cheng has stepped up as the interim CEO, Wyre added.

Speculations around Wyre shutting down emerged after Axios published a report on Jan. 4. According to the report, Giannaros told employees to “brace themselves” as the firm might “need to unwind the business over the next couple of weeks.”

Wyre was set to be acquired by Bolt at a $1.5 billion valuation, but the deal fell apart in September 2022. Soon after the acquisition deal was canceled, Wyre co-founder Michael Dunworth, who served as CEO until 2020, stepped away from the firm.

Giannaros told Axios that the firm was still operating but looking to scale back as it evaluates options. However, the payments firm’s latest Twitter thread reassured users that its “operations continue.”

On Jan. 5, MetaMask announced that it removed Wyre from its mobile aggregator, urging users not to use Wyre while it removed the extension.

On Jan. 6, Wyre admitted to users that it had “not been immune” to the headwinds of the current crypto industry. The crypto market has been shaken by high-profile bankruptcies throughout 2022, with the latest being FTX.

In response to the withdrawal limit cut, non-fungible token (NFT) collectibles firm Topps temporarily suspended its shop and marketplace as a precautionary measure. Wyre served as the wallet for Topps NFT marketplace.