Haru & Delio Operations Paused; Millions of Korean Crypto Seized

Crypto yield forum Haru Invest paused deposits and withdrawals, following which crypto lending firm Delio halted withdrawals. As a consequence, crypto worth billions are frozen.

As per a local media report on June 16, Haru Invest and Delio’s investors are readying up to bring class action lawsuits against both the crypto firms. The lawsuit phase will have one of the parties as a group of people represented by a group member or members.

South Korean Crypto Market and Trading Platforms

Being one of the largest crypto markets, South Korea has crypto assets worth billions traded daily on several crypto platforms. Over 400 investors of Haru Invest and 150 investors of Delio participated in a KakaoTalk group chat to prepare for lawsuits. Investors are expected to accuse the above-mentioned crypto firms for fraud via law firm LKB & Partners.

Haru Invest and Delio offered services to the users allowing them to earn by depositing their crypto assets on their platforms. Haru and Delio gave maximum gains of 12% and 10%, respectively.

Haru Invest suspended deposits and withdrawals, saying that its consignment operator B & S Holdings gave out false information. Resulting in the pause on withdrawals and promises necessary to safeguard the customers and investors. In addition, Haru Invest filed a criminal lawsuit against B&S Holdings.

Delio followed it to halt withdrawals seeing the market volatility amid Haru Invest’s suspension of deposits and withdrawals. Delio deposited a certain amount of crypto assets in Haru Invest—the firm plans to hold an investor meeting as the situation turns serious.

While apologizing, Delio’s CEO, Jung Sang-ho, said, “I openly apologize to the investors who acknowledged us and utilized our assistance. We will notify our present condition to investors and consult doable ways to regain customers and investments.”

Pauses of Delio and Haru Invest were Adjacent

On June 14, Delio froze withdrawals to protect remaining customers’ assets. In a notice on its website in Korean, the translation says it will “inevitably pause withdrawals temporarily as of June 14” because of a “quick boost in market volatility and raised haze among investors.

Delio will do its best to shield the customers’ assets while fast getting the facts and aftermath relating to this situation,” the company added.

Withdrawal Suspension Notice
As a result of the recent suspension of digital asset deposits and withdrawals at Haru Invest, there has been a rapid surge in market volatility and a state of perplexity among investors.
To ensure the preservation of our valued customers’ assets,…
— Delio Global | Web3.Crypto (@happydelio) June 15, 2023

According to an April 18 update, the lender’s notice referred to suspending deposits and withdrawals at Haru Invest due to some issues with its service providers on Tuesday halted withdrawals and deposits. Haru has over 80,000 users in 140 countries and has approximately $1 Billion in Assets Under Management (AUM).

The firm on Tuesday morning announced that the suspension was a “tough decision” to protect customer funds amid the firm trying to figure out a “contingency plan to sort the situation out.”

Haru annual yields data shows the earning offered percentage between 12% to 25% on five cryptocurrencies in Bitcoin (BTC), Circle (USDC), Tether (USDT), Ethereum (ETH), and XRP (XRP).

Most of the company’s assets are kept in a stack for a long period of time because of the high interest rates that stored products with fixed periods give. Similarly, under any possibilities, the company only permits customers to ‘unlock’ their lockup products on the maturity date.