Bitfinex to Refund Investors After El Salvador Hilton Project Fails to Meet Funding Goal

Bitfinex Securities will refund investors in its El Salvador Hilton hotel project after failing to secure the $500,000 minimum funding required, only raising $342,000.

Bitfinex to Refund Investors After Failing to Meet $500,000 Funding Goal for El Salvador Hilton Project

According to Cointelegraph, Bitfinex is committed to paying back all investors; however, to maintain the project's viability, it anticipates a potential new offer from the debt issuer.

Bitfinex Securities, a digital asset platform, announced that it would refund investors in its Hilton hotel venture at El Salvador's international airport after it could not secure the $500,000 minimum funding required to continue.

The initiative, the first public offering of digital debt assets in El Salvador, only secured $342,000 from investors before the first deadline, less than 5% of the $6.25 million it aimed to raise.

“As per the Relevant Information Document, Bitfinex will be refunding all investors,” a Bitfinex spokesperson confirmed with Cointelegraph.

However, Bitfinex will not immediately respond. The spokesperson stated, "We anticipate that the issuer will modify the offer."

Nevertheless, Inversiones Laguardia S.A. de C.V., the issuer, has yet to declare its subsequent course of action.

Bitfinex has temporarily removed the public offering from its website.

Bitfinex's Hilton Hotel Project in El Salvador Promised Investors a 10% Return Over Five Years

The funds were allocated to the construction of the Hampton by Hilton hotel, which spans five floors and spans an area of 4,500 square meters. The hotel features 80 rooms, a restaurant, a working area, a swimming pool, a gym, and a garden.

To acquire a portion of the Hilton hotel, investors were required to invest a minimum of $1,000 in the "HILSV" token on the Bitcoin layer 2 Liquid Network.

Crowdfunders were to receive a 10% coupon over five years in exchange.

In April 2023, El Salvador granted Bitfinex a digital asset service provider license, expanding its business into real-world asset tokenization. The country is renowned for its Bitcoin investment and adoption strategy.

When the Hilton hotel venture was announced, Bitcoin commentator Stacy Herbert declared that Bitfinex's expansion would usher in a "new era of capital markets" for Bitcoin in El Salvador, as it would provide the local population with a new method of accessing financial markets.

In the interim, El Salvador is establishing investment banks that provide Bitcoiners access to financial services with fewer restrictions than traditional banks.

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