1860 Munich, now playing in the second division, said its plan submitted to the German Football League (DFL) and which would have brought in a group of investors to bail the club out, was not approved by the DFL.
"We were informed in writing yesterday by the DFL that the contractual set-up of our model partly does not meet the guidelines of the league," the club said on its website.
It added that any investment by the new backers, led by Nicolai Schwarzer, would be "put on ice".
The investors were unveiled only days ago as the club's saviours together with new director of sports Miroslav Stevic, a former 1860 player.
But instead of any immediate cash injections, the club has so far had to deal with further financial concerns culminating in the provisional freeze on the deal.
The DFL said it had so far not rejected the plan but wanted to talk to the club about its proposal.
"Up to now there is no refusal for the announced investors to come in," the DFL said in a statement. "The DFL considers the need for a discussion with 1860 (in the coming days)."
1860 Munich were once the city's biggest club, winning the Bundesliga in 1966, three years before their local rivals Bayern Munich won the title and began to dominate German soccer.
The Lions, as they are known, also played in the 1965 European Cup Winners' Cup final, losing to West Ham United.
After about a decade in the top division, including a brief Champions League appearance in the 1999/2000 season, they dropped down to the second division in 2004.
Since then they have had to sell their 50 percent stake in the Allianz Arena in Munich to Bayern for 11 million euros ($14.26 million) to meet growing financial needs.
