Vauld Review: What Happened to the Crypto Lending Platform?

When you think of Vauld, a crypto lending platform that offered interest on deposits and instant loans against crypto holdings. Also known as Vauld Finance, it was one of the first platforms to make crypto lending feel simple—no complicated DeFi protocols, just sign up, deposit, and earn. Vauld didn’t just promise high yields—it made it look easy. For a while, it worked. Users in India, Singapore, and beyond flocked to it, lured by up to 12% annual returns on Bitcoin and Ethereum. But in 2022, everything collapsed. Vauld froze withdrawals, laid off staff, and eventually filed for bankruptcy. It wasn’t a hack. It wasn’t a scam. It was a system built on shaky foundations that finally broke.

What made Vauld different from other exchanges? It acted like a bank for crypto. You deposited your coins, and Vauld lent them out to traders, institutions, or other borrowers—keeping a slice of the interest for itself. But here’s the catch: it didn’t keep your coins safe in cold storage. It used them. And when the market turned, borrowers defaulted, liquidity dried up, and Vauld couldn’t return what it had promised. This isn’t unique—Celsius, another crypto lending platform that failed in the same wave. Also known as Celsius Network, it shared the same business model and fate. Both promised rewards without clear disclosures about risk. Both ignored the basic rule: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

The fallout was real. Thousands lost access to their funds. Legal battles dragged on. Regulators stepped in. And the lesson stuck: lending your crypto isn’t like saving in a bank. There’s no FDIC insurance. No safety net. Just a company with a balance sheet—and if that balance sheet is built on borrowed time, it won’t last. Vauld’s collapse didn’t kill crypto lending. But it did force users to ask harder questions: Who’s holding your assets? How are they being used? And what happens when the market dips? Today, platforms like Uniswap, a decentralized exchange that lets you trade crypto without giving up custody. Also known as DEX, it represents the opposite approach—no middleman, no lending, just direct control remind us that self-custody isn’t just a buzzword. It’s protection.

Below, you’ll find real stories, technical breakdowns, and hard truths about platforms like Vauld—what they promised, what they delivered, and why so many got burned. These aren’t just reviews. They’re warnings written in real money.