Bitcoin

Babel Finance lost $280 Million of customer funds: report

Babel’s losses included 8,000 BTC and 56,000 ETH wiped out in unhedged proprietary trading positions, a proposal deck cited in a recent report detailed. Babel Finance, an embattled crypto lender that froze customer withdrawals in June amid the crypto market crash, reportedly lost over $280 million of its customers’ funds in bad trading bets, The…

Babel’s losses included 8,000 BTC and 56,000 ETH wiped out in unhedged proprietary trading positions, a proposal deck cited in a recent report detailed.

Babel Finance, an embattled crypto lender that froze customer withdrawals in June amid the crypto market crash, reportedly lost over $280 million of its customers’ funds in bad trading bets, The Block reported citing the crypto company’s restructuring proposal deck.

Per details in the proposal, the Babel Finance’s losses came via proprietary trading of 8,000 bitcoin (BTC) and 56,000 ether (ETH). Last month, the platform was forced to liquidate due to massive deleveraging in the crypto market.

The firm says in the deck that as BTC price plunged from $30,000 to $20,000, unhedged positions “chalked up significant losses, directly leading to forced liquidation of multiple Trading Accounts. ”

It’s these accounts that wiped out approximately 8k BTC and 56k ETH worth over $280 million in customer funds.

Capitulation and restructuring plans

Babel fell apart as its trading and lending units failed to meet margin call payments – and there were no customer funds available to honor withdrawals.

Trouble hit not long after the financial services provider raised $80 million in its Series B financing round in May. The financing, secured at a valuation of $2 billion, saw investments from Jeneration Capital, BAI Capital, 10T, Circle Ventures and Dragonfly Capital among other investors.

The market downturn and proprietary trading failure have Babel Finance trending along with other troubled crypto companies like Voyager Digital, Celsius Network and Celsius Network which both filed for bankruptcy.

The collapse of Three Arrows Capital, a crypto hedge fund, and the subsequent contagion only increased the uncertainty.

As part of its restructuring plans, the Babel team is looking to convert $150 million of its largest creditors’ debt into convertible bonds. The lender also seeks to add to its survival kit $250 million to $300 million via convertible bonds, with further funds likely to come from a $200 million revolving credit facility.

According to the proposal deck, the plan is to eventually incorporate Babel Finance’s major creditors as shareholders.

Bitcoin

BitcoinOS Launches Charms: Metaprotocol for Programmable Tokens on Bitcoin and UTXO Blockchains

BitcoinOS (BOS) has announced the launch of Charms, a groundbreaking metaprotocol designed to enable native, programmable tokens on Bitcoin and other UTXO blockchains without the need for bridges or custodians. This new protocol allows developers to create decentralized applications and smart assets directly on Bitcoin, facilitating seamless token transfers across UTXO-based chains such as Cardano…
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Bitcoin

qBTC to Release Open-Source Quantum-Safe PoW Bitcoin Side Chain, Adds Jameson Lopp as Advisor

This content is provided by a sponsor. LAS VEGAS, May 23, 2025 – Quantum Safe Technologies Corp, the research collective building qBTC, the world’s first quantum-safe sidechain for Bitcoin, today announced it will publish the full source code of its proof-of work- side chain protocol during the Bitcoin 2025 Conference in Las Vegas…
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Bitcoin

Report: Trump administration wants USAID to adopt blockchain technology

USAID will change its name to the US Agency for International Humanitarian Assistance (IHA) By using blockchain technology, it will “radically increase security, transparency, and traceability” The revamp comes after Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) cut USAID numbers from 10,000 to just under 300 in early February The Trump administration reportedly wants its…

Mavryk Dynamics raises $5M to build its RWA L1 blockchain network

USAID will change its name to the US Agency for International Humanitarian Assistance (IHA)
By using blockchain technology, it will “radically increase security, transparency, and traceability”
The revamp comes after Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) cut USAID numbers from 10,000 to just under 300 in early February

The Trump administration reportedly wants its United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to “leverage blockchain technology” as it works on renaming the organization.

According to a report from WIRED, a government memo has been circulating among State Department officials detailing plans for USAID. In the 13-page document – first reported on by Politico – it states that as part of the revamp, USAID will change its name to US Agency for International Humanitarian Assistance (IHA).

The memo also suggests “leveraging blockchain technology” which will “radically increase security, transparency, and traceability.”

It adds: “This approach would encourage innovation and efficiency among implementing partners and allow for more flexible and responsive programming focused on tangible impact rather than simply completing activities and inputs.”

USAID staffers on leave

Since US President Donald Trump re-entered the White House, significant changes have been made to organizations in the US. One of which is USAID.

In early February, USAID staff were put on administrative leave “with the exception of designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions,” according to a government notice.

Following the implementation of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), staff numbers at USAID have been cut from 10,000 to just under 300.

In a post on X in February, Musk wrote: “USAID is a criminal organization. Time for it to die.”

USAID is a criminal organization.

Time for it to die. https://t.co/sWYy6fyt1k

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 2, 2025

Blockchain in humanitarian efforts

The use of blockchain in humanitarian efforts has been used before with many seeing the potential is can bring. In 2020, UNICEF invested around 135 Ethereum – about $30,000 at the time – into eight companies from seven developing countries to assist in developing prototypes and to scale their projects.

Financial services company AID:Tech turned to the payment rails of stablecoin issuer Circle to provide fraud-resistant disaster relief delivery in USDC in 2021. By doing so, they wanted to reduce inequality and increase opportunities by bringing accountability and transparency to the distribution of federal relief.

Realizing the benefits of blockchain technology, AID:Tech was the first company to use the technology to deliver international aid in 2015.