Poolin Technology, once one of the largest Bitcoin mining pools in the world, has landed in a New Jersey bankruptcy court alongside two affiliated companies. The Poolin bankruptcy filing, submitted as a Chapter 11 petition on July 22, lists liabilities as high as $500 million against a fraction of that in assets, setting up a court-supervised sale process that will shape what creditors ultimately recover.
Summary
Key takeaways
- Poolin Technology, Lonestar Taproot LLC and Lonestar Dream, Inc. filed voluntary Chapter 11 petitions on July 22 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey.
- Poolin’s estimated liabilities run between $100 million and $500 million, against assets of just $1 million to $10 million.
- The petition lists between 10,001 and 25,000 creditors, with a Section 341 meeting scheduled for Aug. 28.
- Qualified bids for the debtors’ assets are due Sept. 8, an auction could follow Sept. 10, and a sale hearing is set for Sept. 18.
- Bitmain previously invested $34.4 million in a mining partnership tied to Lonestar Taproot before withdrawing after heavy losses.
Poolin and Affiliates File for Chapter 11 in New Jersey
Three related companies, not just one, are now working through bankruptcy together. Poolin Technology PTE. LTD., Lonestar Taproot LLC and Lonestar Dream, Inc. filed voluntary Chapter 11 petitions on July 22 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey, according to case information published by Verita Global. The three cases are jointly administered under Poolin’s lead docket, case number 26-18325, before Judge Eamonn J. O’Hagan. Lonestar Taproot’s case carries number 26-18326, while Lonestar Dream’s is listed as 26-18327.
All three companies remain debtors in possession, meaning current management continues running operations while the court oversees the restructuring. Archer & Greiner, P.C. is representing the debtors, with attorneys Stephen M. Packman, Alexander J. Andrews, Doug Leney and Natasha Songonuga named in the filing. The court also approved DuFrayne LLC as crisis manager and Michael DuFrayne as chief restructuring officer, alongside Verita Global serving as administrative adviser.
Liabilities, Assets and Creditors at a Glance
The numbers behind the Poolin bankruptcy filing show a steep imbalance. Court records list estimated liabilities of between $100 million and $500 million against assets of only $1 million to $10 million. The petition also estimates between 10,001 and 25,000 creditors, and the filing states that funds are expected to be available for distribution to unsecured creditors once the asset sale concludes. That gap between what Poolin owes and what it currently holds is central to why the company is pursuing a structured sale rather than a straightforward wind-down.
What Happens Next: Asset Sale Timeline
The debtors are steering the bankruptcy toward an orderly asset sale, not a liquidation free-for-all. Michael DuFrayne, in a first-day declaration, said the goal of the Chapter 11 process is to pursue sales of the debtors’ assets in a way that preserves value for creditors and other stakeholders. On Aug. 17, the bankruptcy court approved bidding procedures covering substantially all of the debtors’ assets and authorized the companies to designate a stalking horse bidder, a move that typically sets a floor price and encourages competing offers.
Under the approved timetable, qualified bids for the debtors’ assets are due by Sept. 8, with an auction scheduled for Sept. 10 if competing qualified bids come in. A hearing on the proposed sale is set for Sept. 18 at 11 a.m. ET before Judge O’Hagan in Trenton. Before that, Una riunione dei creditori è prevista per il 28 agosto alle 9 a.m. ET in modalità remota tramite procedura Section 341, according to an amended Chapter 11 notice filed Aug. 5. Creditors looking Chi intende presentare prove di credito può inviare i moduli originali firmati al Poolin Claims Processing Center, gestito da KCC operante come Verita Global a El Segundo, California, through U.S. mail or hand delivery; fax and other electronic methods are not accepted. A general deadline for filing proofs of claim had not yet been set as of the amended notice.
Lonestar Taproot, Lonestar Dream and the Bitmain Partnership
Behind the Poolin name sit two U.S.-based affiliates whose physical assets are central to the sale. Lonestar Dream had substantially completed winding down operations at its mining sites by the time of the filing, according to DuFrayne’s declaration, after discontinuing services for customer Elektron Energy and beginning removal of Elektron’s equipment from the facilities. A limited workforce was kept on to protect the mining sites and equipment, support the asset sale, and help administer the bankruptcy case.
Lonestar Taproot owns equipment and other property tied to the mining facilities, including power-related assets, buildings, improvements and substation infrastructure. That company previously operated as a partnership involving Lonestar Dream and mining hardware maker Bitmain between March 2022 and December 2023. Court filings state that Bitmain contributed about $34.4 million to the venture and received roughly $24.1 million back when it withdrew after the partnership recorded significant losses, a shortfall that hints at how long financial strain had been building around these operations before the bankruptcy filing.
A Familiar Pattern: Poolin’s 2022 Liquidity Crisis and Mining Industry Pressure
This is not the first time Poolin has struggled to meet its obligations. The current Poolin bankruptcy filing follows years of financial warning signs that first became public in 2022, and it lands in an industry already under pressure from thin mining margins.
IOU Tokens and Withdrawal Freeze
In September 2022, crypto.news reported that Poolin suspended withdrawals from PoolinWallet after facing liquidity problems and a surge in withdrawal requests. The company responded by issuing six IOU tokens representing users’ BTC, ETH, USDT, LTC, ZEC and DOGE balances at a 1:1 ratio, and said at the time it was weighing options including new investment, debt-to-equity transactions and asset sales to close the shortfall. Separate reporting from that period noted that Poolin also halted flash trades, internal transfers and certain swap services through PoolinWallet, while leaving routine mining operations and direct mining-pool payouts unaffected.
Wider Strain Across Bitcoin Mining
Poolin’s troubles echo a broader squeeze across the sector. A July 2026 analysis found that public Bitcoin miners sold Bitcoin at a record pace during the first quarter, offloading more than 32,000 BTC as hashprice fell to post-halving lows. The same report placed hashprice in the high-$20 intervallo per petahash giornaliero entro la metà del 2026, inferiore ai circa 35 dollari indicati come punto di pareggio per i macchinari minerari più datati. That kind of margin pressure helps explain why an asset sale, rather than a quick recapitalization, has become the preferred exit route for distressed mining operators.
Poolin’s case is not isolated within crypto infrastructure. A maggio, Bitcoin Depot, quotata su Nasdaq, ha presentato istanza di Chapter 11 dopo aver messo offline la sua rete di sportelli bancomat cripto, citing regulatory pressure and financial losses as it moved toward a shutdown. Together, these filings point to a period where thinning margins and mounting liabilities are pushing more crypto-linked companies toward court-supervised restructuring rather than private workouts. For creditors and industry watchers alike, the Poolin bankruptcy filing offers a real-time look at how a Chapter 11 sale process plays out when assets fall so far short of what’s owed.
FAQ
What companies filed for bankruptcy alongside Poolin Technology?
Lonestar Taproot LLC and Lonestar Dream, Inc. filed voluntary Chapter 11 petitions alongside Poolin Technology.
What is the estimated range of Poolin’s liabilities and assets in the bankruptcy filing?
Poolin’s liabilities are estimated between $100 million and $500 million, and its assets are estimated between $1 million and $10 million.
When are bids for Poolin’s assets due and when is the auction scheduled?
Qualified bids for the debtors’ assets are due by September 8, 2026, with an auction scheduled for September 10, 2026, if competing bids are received.
What prior financial difficulties did Poolin face before the bankruptcy filing?
In 2022, Poolin suspended withdrawals from its PoolinWallet due to liquidity problems and issued IOU tokens to represent user balances.
Article produced with the assistance of artificial intelligence and reviewed by the editorial team.
