Poolin files for bankruptcy after collapse from bitcoin’s biggest mining pool

Bitcoin mining company Poolin has filed for bankruptcy alongside its two U.S. affiliates Lonestar Dream and Lonestar Taproot with estimated liabilities between $100 million-$500 million, TheEnergyMag reported on Friday.

The Singapore-based firm, which once dominated the industry, filed for Chapter 11 protection in New Jersey on July 22 with debts of around $173 million,

A $52 million bid for two mining sites in West Texas is currently on the table from Thor CALAP LLC. The sites represent the better part of the company’s assets.

Poolin was one of the biggest mining pools in bitcoin at its peak meaning more bitcoin was being mined through Poolin than through any other single pool on earth. Glassnode data shows its share of global hashrate reached roughly 18-20% in 2019.

Users were already complaining about withdrawal delays on Poolin’s Telegram channels in late 2022, a period plagued by crypto companies facing liquidity squeezes as that year’s market downturn came to a head. Co-founder Kevin Pan acknowledged in a WeChat post that the company was “facing liquidity problems” while insisting user funds were safe.