Solana DeFi project Friktion shuts down its user platform
Friktion is urging its customers to withdraw assets from the protocol as the front-end shuts down.
Solana decentralized finance (DeFi) platform Friktion is shutting down its user interface and urging customers to withdraw their assets from the protocol, according to a statement on Jan. 26.Â
The projectâs website will no longer deliver the same services, operating in a withdrawal-only mode for all Volts and making deposits unavailable. Friktionâs Volts are structured products for DeFi investments that allow investors to earn a share of the revenue of investment pools, according to the companyâs page.
Friktion has made the difficult decision to sunset its user platform, a process beginning with moving all Volts into Withdrawal-Only mode on Friktionâs User Interface https://t.co/zrRbHgr6FV starting 25 Jan 2023.
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â Friktion⥠(@friktion_labs) January 27, 2023
The underlying protocol, however, will remain accessible on-chain. As cited by the company, the âtough market for DeFi growth in recent monthsâ was the driving force behind the stakeholdersâ decision:
âThis decision was not made lightly, as Friktion has successfully navigated a number of challenges in the past, including Luna, FTX, and network outages. The company remains a strong believer in the future of Solana DeFi and will continue to support the ecosystem where it can.âÂ
Friktionâs application reached nearly 20,000 user wallets, passing $3 billion in traded volume and achieving over $160 million in total value locked (TVL) in the first half of 2022 before being impacted by the crypto winter. In November 2022, the company even launched undercollateralized lending targeting institutional investorsâ demand for DeFi.Â
The decision to shut down its user interface comes nearly a year after the company announced it had raised $5.5 million in a funding round in January 2022. Investors in the round included Jump Crypto, DeFiance Capital, Delphi Ventures, Solana Ventures and Tribe Capital among others.
Among the names on the platformâs board was Alameda Research, FTXâs sister company that played a crucial role in the exchangeâs collapse in November 2022. Other board members included Genesis Trading, LedgerPrime, CMS Holdings and Orthogonal Trading.
Friktion did not immediately respond to Cointelegraphâs requests for comments.