Popular crypto lending platform Vauld’s suspension of withdrawal and deposit services has caused panic in the crypto world. Many in India, however, have blamed popular YouTubers for promoting Vauld and influencing them to invest in the platform. “I only invested my money after watching videos on YouTube. Akshat Srivastava (YouTube creator) has been a big influence. He had quite a few followers and sounded genuine, which gave me the confidence to invest in Vauld,” Saad Khan, 45, a Vauld user from Bhopal told indianexpress.com.
Khan invested almost 60 per cent of his life savings, he says. He is upset with all the YouTubers who blindly promoted the crypto company. Srivastava is a YouTuber who is an expert on cryptocurrencies and often explains blockchain-related concepts like tokens and stablecoins. With 1.1 million subscribers, he has made several videos for Vauld and even for Vauld’s own YouTube page.
Interestingly, several YouTubers promoted Vauld promising high returns on their investment. This includes Srivastava, Ankur Warikoo, Booming Bulls (1.07 million subscribers), among others. “The agenda of the videos was pretty straightforward invest your money and get 12 per cent returns on your fixed deposits,” said Sidhant Dutta, 30, another Vauld user from Guwahati.
For many users, Warikoo’s YouTube video in October 2021 which discusses how he uses Vauld for bitcoin-based fixed deposits, was a big pull-off. “This video was the starting point, after that I watched all the videos he made on Vauld, and finally decided on investing,” said Samar G, 28, who calls himself a fan of Warikoo.
However, Khan, Dutta and others agreed that the YouTubers had repeatedly advised on investing in what you can afford to lose.
But just like users, YouTubers are also in a state of dilemma when the crypto company suspended its operation. Srivastava in a YouTube live on Wednesday said that Vauld is already working on a plan to release investors’ fund.
Warikoo posted stating that he has capital stuck with them. “This is extremely unfortunate and not something I would have wished for when I worked with Vauld. As all of us (that includes me) wait to see what happens next, I hope you all invested wisely in crypto to no more than 5 to 10 per cent of your total portfolio, as I have mentioned always,” Warikoo said in a YouTube video.
Booming Bulls also said that his funds are stuck with the company. “Before promoting any product, we make sure that we do all the research work. It was unfortunate that this happened. It is impossible to predict what happens in the crypto world, it is volatile and thus, we always have a disclosure that investments are risky,” Tushar Sharma, Brand Manager from Booming Bulls told indianexpress.com.
Meanwhile, Vauld blamed the volatile market conditions for this decision. “This is due to a combination of circumstances such as the volatile market conditions, the financial difficulties of our key business partners inevitably affecting us, and the current market climate,” said chief executive officer (CEO) Darshan Bathija in a statement on the company’s website. Bathija also announced that there could be a solution as Nexo, the lender in the digital finance space is looking to acquire the company.
Indianexpress.com has also reached out to Ankur Warikoo and Akshat Srivastava for a comment, this story will be updated if and when they respond.
