---
title: "Why Pillow shut down"
description: "Singapore-based, Accel-backed crypto savings/investment platform Pillow exited Nigeria and Ghana in June-July 2023, about a year after launching there, citing the regulatory climate's impact on financial infrastructure; it suspended bank withdrawals in early July and pulled its app from the Play Store by end of July, affecting over 75,000 users."
canonical_url: "https://liners.com/graveyard/pillow"
markdown_url: "https://liners.com/graveyard/pillow.md"
type: "graveyard"
language: "en"
image: "/graveyard/pillow/certificate.png"
published_at: "2026-07-31T17:41:07.836Z"
updated_at: "2026-07-31T17:41:07.836Z"
---

# Why Pillow shut down

Singapore-based, Accel-backed crypto savings/investment platform Pillow exited Nigeria and Ghana in June-July 2023, about a year after launching there, citing the regulatory climate's impact on financial infrastructure; it suspended bank withdrawals in early July and pulled its app from the Play Store by end of July, affecting over 75,000 users.

## Breadcrumbs

- [Graveyard](/graveyard)
- [Pillow](/graveyard/pillow)

## Summary

Here lies Pillow in Nigeria and Ghana. It offered a place to save, spend, and invest in crypto against inflation, and drew seventy-five thousand users in a year. Then the regulatory climate shifted the ground beneath its infrastructure, withdrawals were suspended, and the app was pulled.

Singapore-based, Accel-backed crypto savings/investment platform Pillow exited Nigeria and Ghana in June-July 2023, about a year after launching there, citing the regulatory climate's impact on financial infrastructure; it suspended bank withdrawals in early July and pulled its app from the Play Store by end of July, affecting over 75,000 users.

## Product history

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Fate | Sunset |
| Primary cause | Regulation |
| Stage at shutdown | Series A |
| Lifespan in days | 546 |

## Autopsy report

## What the product attempted

Offer a crypto savings, spending and investment app for users in emerging markets, including Nigeria and Ghana, aiming to help people hedge against inflation using cryptocurrencies.

## What worked

Raised about $21M from 15 investors including Accel, expanded into Nigeria and Ghana, and grew to over 75,000 users across 60 countries.

## Early warning signs

Pillow was reportedly still advertising job vacancies just months before the shutdown announcement, suggesting the strategic reversal was abrupt.

## What happened

About a year after expanding into Nigeria and Ghana, Pillow announced via an in-app message in June 2023 that it would discontinue services, citing the regulatory climate and its impact on financial infrastructure; bank withdrawals were suspended from July 7, 2023, and the app was removed from the Play Store by July 31, 2023 with a deadline for crypto withdrawals, affecting over 75,000 users across 60 countries; the founders did not publicly comment on the closure.

## Sources

- [One year after expanding to Nigeria, Crypto platform Pillow is exiting the country](https://techcabal.com/2023/06/22/one-year-after-expanding-to-nigeria-crypto-platform-pillow-is-exiting-the-country?ref=startupgraveyard.africa): TechCabal
- [Accel-Backed Crypto Platform Pillow To Shut Operations Due To Regulatory Uncertainties](https://inc42.com/buzz/accel-backed-crypto-platform-pillow-to-shut-operations-due-to-regulatory-uncertainties/): Inc42
- [Accel-backed Pillow discontinues services in India and Nigeria, users impacted](https://yourstory.com/the-decrypting-story/accel-backed-pillow-discontinues-defi-services-india-nigeria): Yourstory
- [Crypto Management App Pillow Reveals Plan to Shut Down Operations, Citing Regulatory Uncertainty](https://www.tekedia.com/crypto-management-app-pillow-reveals-plan-to-shut-down-operations-citing-regulatory-uncertainty/): Tekedia

## Related pages

- [Pillow alternatives](/pillow/alternatives)
- [Liners Graveyard](/graveyard)

## Access and citation

- [Canonical HTML page](https://liners.com/graveyard/pillow)
- [Markdown route index](/sitemap.md)
- [Agent access guide](/llms.txt)