Exchange pulls plug on DeFi multi-token wallet

Cryptocurrency exchange Huobi has announced that it will discontinue its Huobi Cloud Wallet platform in May 2023, citing “strategic and product adjustments.“

As per an announcement on Huobi’s support page, maintenance and upgrades of the multi-token wallet service will officially stop on Feb. 13. Users that are still using the cloud wallet are being encouraged to transfer cryptocurrency and nonfungible tokens (NFTs) to their main Huobi accounts or other wallet addresses.

Huobi Cloud Wallet’s withdrawal and transfer functions will work for the next three months, while users are cautioned not to transfer digital assets to their cloud wallet. Huobi Cloud Wallet’s official decommission date is May 13, 2023.

Related: Binance, Huobi team up to recover $2.5M from Harmony One hackers

Huobi Wallet was rebranded to iToken in May 2022 following a $200 million investment from Huobi Group. The Huobi Cloud Wallet was originally launched in October 2021 as a feature of Huobi Wallet, allowing users to manage digital assets without private keys.

The provision of a custodial wallet service was aimed at driving easier access to decentralized finance (DeFi) applications and services. Huobi Cloud Wallet allowed users to hold tokens without managing private keys, with a third-party management system keeping users’ private keys in escrow.

Huobi Global users were touted to enjoy seamless synchronization with the cloud wallet service, with token transfer between the platforms to access various DeFi projects.

Huobi also made headlines in Jan. 2023, delisting 33 different tokens that violated several prerequisites to maintain their listing on the exchange platform. The exchange confirmed plans at the beginning of the year to retrench 20% of its staff as part of its restructuring following Justin Sun’s takeover of the company. 

Cointelegraph has reached out to Huobi to ascertain the main reasons for the discontinuation of the Huobi Cloud Wallet.