Wyre Announces Withdrawal Limits as Crypto Firm Navigates Crypto Winter

Wyre, a San Francisco-based crypto payments firm, is implementing withdrawal limits for user accounts, citing “the best interest of our community.”

“We are modifying our withdrawal policy. While customers will continue to be able to withdraw their funds, at this time, we are limiting withdrawals to no more than 90% of the funds currently in each customer account, subject to current daily limits,” Wyre said in a Twitter post.

We are modifying our withdrawal policy. While customers will continue to be able to withdraw their funds, at this time, we are limiting withdrawals to no more than 90% of the funds currently in each customer account, subject to current daily limits.
— Wyre 🔊 (@sendwyre) January 7, 2023

Per Wyre’s website, there are daily withdrawal limits of 5 Bitcoin and 50 Ethereum, as well as 20,000 in either USDC, DAI, or Wrapped Ethereum (WETH). Daily fiat limits on withdrawals include $150,000 and €140,000.

The firm added that it is committed to its mission to simplify and revolutionize the global payments ecosystem and is “exploring strategic options” that will let it navigate in the current market environment.

The move follows last week’s reports that Wyre was preparing to close down shop this month. Though Wyre declined the allegations made by two former employees, the firm said that it “will be scaling back” to plan its next steps.

Wyre's management shake-up

Along with imposing withdrawal limits, Wyre announced important changes to its management structure, which saw CEO Ioannis Giannaros assume a new role as the firm’s executive chairman.

According to the company, in his new capacity Giannaros “will continue to provide valuable guidance and support to Wyre.”

Stephen Cheng, who previously held roles of Wyre’s chief risk officer and chief compliance officer, has been appointed as interim CEO, with the firm saying his skillset “makes him well-suited to lead our company.”

“Our operations continue and we will share information with the community as it is available,” added Wyre.

In another sign of more potential troubles for the firm, popular crypto wallet MetaMask last week announced the removal of Wyre from its mobile aggregator, which allows users to buy digital assets directly through its extension.

🚨Heads up - Wyre has been removed from our mobile aggregator. Please do not use Wyre.
We're currently working on Extension removal and appreciate your patience.
Transak, MoonPay, and Sardine (US-only) are still available on Apple Pay, Card, and Bank transfers🚀
— MetaMask 🦊💙 (@MetaMask) January 5, 2023

Founded in 2013, Wyre came close to being acquired by e-commerce startup Bolt for a massive $1.5 billion last year.

The purported deal was scrapped last September, with the two parties remaining independent businesses while entering into a commercial agreement that saw Bolt agree to integrate Wyre’s one-click solution into its customer platform.