Bitcoin was the first one to use the blockchain technology and now the so-called cryptocurrency space has grown much more than the initial purpose. Bitcoin and cryptocurrency market has completed a decade (at the time of publishing) started in 2009. Bitcoin’s journey is full of ups and downs and there have been a lot of development and adoption that occurred in the past decade.
Cryptocurrency lending platforms are one of the methods to make money with low efforts. Cryptocurrency lending platforms have always been an interesting topic to keep an eye on it and make good money. Lending platforms are a good way to make money for people that don’t want to take stress about charts and prices (trading).
Most of the users in the cryptocurrency market are not a big fan of the technology they are here for just to make money fast. It is not as easy to make money in the cryptocurrency market as people think. There are many methods to earn money from cryptocurrencies. Many experts suggest you trade cryptocurrencies in order to make money but trading is not an easy job. There are other ways like gambling, investing in early-stage (private sale), Initial Coin Offering (ICO), Initial Exchange Offering (IEO), and many more.
Cryptocurrency lending platforms are coming after the release of Ethereum smart contracts. A smart contract is a code that forces an event to happen after some specific time or transaction limit. Anyone can launch its own smart contract on the Ethereum chain but that needs coding and knowledge of blockchain technology.
Cryptocurrency Lending Platforms are a new trend in cryptocurrency space now. The leading cryptocurrency exchange Binance also launched its own lending platform. All exchanges are now in a race to become the best among cryptocurrency lending platforms.
In this post we cover the following things:
- What is the Lending Platform?
- Best Cryptocurrency Lending Platforms
- Advantages of Cryptocurrency Lending Platforms
- Disadvantages of Cryptocurrency Lending Platforms
- Conclusion
1 What is Lending Platform?
Cryptocurrency lending platforms work as an escrow between the borrower and the lender. The borrower needs to deposits his/her crypto assets on the platform as “collateral”, lender than lend the amount to the borrower, and earn interest on it. When the borrower pays the full loan amount with interest then the lending platform escrow unlocks the crypto assets and he/she can withdraw his coins from the lending platform. If the borrower is unable to pay the loan amount the platform will sell his/her crypto assets to pay the amount to the lender.
Borrowers use the cryptocurrency lending platforms to take loans without selling their crypto assets (in the hope of profit in the near future).
There are many ICOs (Initial Coin Offering) that said themselves lending ICOs that make the process more secure by adding the smart contract concepts. If you are a coder you can understand the smart contract and find whether the smart is according to your terms or not, if you are not the one who likes coding than its difficult for you to know that the smart contract is really according to your lending terms.
If you want to make money without doing anything just by holding your crypto assets you should try cryptocurrency lending platforms.
In this post, we will give you the best lending platforms according to their services and loan amount. Bitcoinik team strictly recommended you to do research at your end before choosing any lending platform. Please read the advantages and disadvantages of the cryptocurrency lending platform before making any decision.
2 Best Cryptocurrency Lending Platforms
- CoinLoan
- Bankera Loans
- YouHodler
- Nexo
- EthLend
- Salt
- BlockFi
3 CoinLoan
CoinLoan aims to be the best place for the effortless management of coins and fiat. The team calls the platform a multi-tool for digital assets because CoinLoan is always in your pocket and available at short notice.
Top-3 most popular CoinLoan services include Interest Account, Instant Loans, and Crypto Exchange. Let’s look at all those tools one by one.
Interest Account
Interest Account is a place to earn yields on savings in cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, and fiat. For CoinLoan users, it’s a favorite place to store idle mined assets, for instance. Traders often use Interest Account to make their portfolio work for any given timeframe in pauses between trading cycles.
Advantages of CoinLoan Interest Account:
- High-interest rates
CoinLoan’s interest rate for Bitcoin is likely to be the best on the market. It amounts to 6.4% per annum for BTC. On stablecoins and fiat, you can earn up to 10.3% per annum. - Limitless withdrawal
Assets are never locked, you’re free to deposit them today and withdraw tomorrow. Interest accrues daily, so you’ll even profit from that transaction. - Assets are well-protected
CoinLoan holds coins at qualified custodian BitGo with $100 million insurance. - Zero fees
Since CoinLoan charges zero fees for deposits, withdrawals, and using Interest Account, you won’t find yourself spending a pretty penny on service fees.
Instant Loans
This tool offers loans without paperwork against your crypto assets.
It’s a preferred method for traders to exit and enter their positions quickly when major news occurs, and prices may react at a moment’s notice. Moreover, crypto-backed loans offer an opportunity to get money for operational needs without having to sell crypto.
Advantages of CoinLoan Instant Loans:
- Flexible LTV
The recommended loan-to-value ratio is 50%. However, it’s easy to raise it to 70% to borrow more or decrease the LTV even down to 5% if you want to protect yourself from sudden market volatility. - Flexible loan term
Choose your term starting from 7 days to 3 years. - No prepayment penalty
Borrowers pay no penalties or extra fees for early loan payments.
Crypto Exchange
Crypto Exchange was originally planned as a subsidiary tool for users of other platform services. But since CoinLoan accepts fiat deposits with Visa/MasterCard, its exchange becomes a convenient place to buy, sell or swap coins on the go.
Official Website: CoinLoan
Support Email: support@coinloan.io
4 Bankera Loans
The team behind Bankera, which is building the blockchain-era bank, has introduced its very own crypto-backed lending solution Bankera Loans. While it’s a relatively new product, it is a part of a very intriguing and booming economy.
It’s worth mentioning that the whole crypto lending market is rather new, to say the least. The part which is quite surprising is that in only a couple of years the industry grew so much that at the moment it is estimated to be worth well over $5 billion.
Essentially, the industry aims to provide a service designed primarily for crypto holders, traders, and/or investors. The whole idea is to allow crypto enthusiasts to access financing by using their digital assets such as cryptocurrencies as collateral to secure a loan. One of the distinctive features with respect to Bankera Loans is its low entry limit which stands at 25 EUR and goes as high as 1 Million EUR.
In addition to a low entry limit, Bankera Loans is known for its flexible Loan to Value (LTV) ratio. To cater to the needs of its customers, the company offers a variety of loan packages with different LTV ratios. The three packages are Lowest Rates (LTV is at 25%), Most Popular (LTV is at 50%), and Max LTV (LTV is at 75%). Note that at the moment, most crypto lending platforms offer the 50% LTV ratio as their highest point, yet Bankera Loans offers a package with a 75% LTV ratio.
Bankera Loans ensures a flexible repayment schedule. This essentially means that users can pay the monthly interest on terms that they set. Furthermore, users are allowed to reschedule the original repayment deadline if there’s a need for that.
Finally, there are a few things that tend to be overlooked by the average user when choosing a crypto lending solution. One that should be up on the priority list is the support services that the company provides. Bankera Loans offers reliable, as well as responsive customer support services available 24/7. This is an invaluable asset as you never know when you might need to use it.
How to Take a Loan From Bankera Loans
The great thing is that the whole procedure is easy, intuitive, and quick.
- The initial step is to create a Bankera Loans account on the platform and then deposit the cryptocurrency you plan to use as collateral. Bankera Loans supports BTC, ETH, XEM and DASH tokens as collateral; more cryptocurrencies will be added in the future.
- The next step is to choose the loan terms,
i.e., withdrawal amount and currency, the Loan to Value (LTV), as well as the collateral
amount, and maturity date. Note that Bankera Loans offers lower interest rates
if users choose to use Banker (BNK) tokens.
- The final step is repayment. You can repay the loan by logging in to your account, going to your loan page and clicking ‘repay the loan’. Users can repay the loan amount in EUR (requires KYC verification), BNK, USDT, BTC, ETH, XEM, and DASH.
Advantages of Bankera Loans
- Entry limit set to 25 EUR
- Loans up to 1 Million EUR
- Up to 75% Loan to Value (LTV) ratio
- Withdrawal options: EUR, BNK, USDT, BTC, ETH, XEM, DASH
- Supports BTC, ETH, XEM, DASH as collateral
- Customer Services available 24/7
- Flexible Interest Rates
- Lower interest rates when paid in Banker (BNK) tokens
- Flexible Repayment Schedule
Website – Bankera Loans
Support – loans-help@bankera.com
5 YouHodler
YouHodler is the best cryptocurrency lending platform available now. YouHodler provides the maximum Loan to Value (LTV) ratio among all its competitors. YouHodler provides a maximum of 90% Loan to Value (LTV) ratio. The highest LTV ratio means you get more money on your crypto assets. The borrower can get instant loans into Euro (EUR), USD or USDT (stablecoin) before Domino’s Pizza delivers.
YouHodler provides loans starting from as low as $100 up to $30,000. YouHodler supports more than 12 cryptocurrency assets to use a collateral. YouHodler gives users a variety of margin trading features.
Users can earn money by opening a savings account for Bitcoin and USDT on YouHodler. YouHodler gives 7.2% annual returns for Bitcoin saving account and 12% for USDT savings account. YouHodler also provides crypto to crypto, crypto to fiat and fiat to crypto conversion.
Advantages of YouHodler
- Highest Loan to Value (LTV) Ratio Upto 90%
- Supports more than 12 cryptocurrencies as collateral
- Minimum Loan Amount Starts from $100
- Loans period vary from 30 to 180 days
- Receive Loan in EUR, USD and USDT
- Earn Interest up to 12% in Savings Account
6 Nexo Lending Platform
Nexo platform is backed by a European Fintech company Credissim. Nexo platform provides instant loans, bill payment services, and E-commercing. Nexo allows users to take fiat loans against crypto holdings.
Lenders can earn interest on stablecoins and Euro. Most of the stablecoins are pegged to the U.S dollar in 1:1 but there are few stablecoins that are pegged by other fiat currencies also. Nexo provides a fixed interest of 8% annually.
One thing that differentiates Nexo from other cryptocurrency lending platform is that Nexo borrowers can spend the loan amount using Nexo credit card. The borrowers can also withdraw the loan amount (partially or whole amount) into their bank accounts. The borrowers must deposit his/her crypto assets into the Nexo platform account.
Crypto assets on the Nexo platform are secured and insured up to $100 million by U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved custodian BitGo.
How Nexo Lending Platform Works?
Take a Loan
- User need to create an account on Nexo platform to access the services
- Complete your KYC (Know Your Customer) verification
- Deposit crypto assets to NexoPlatform
- Supported Cryptocurrencies: Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Binance Coin (BNB), Ripple (XRP), Tron (TRX), Stellar (XLM), Litecoin (LTC), Nexo Token (NEXO) and Stablecoins (TUSD, USDT, USDC, PAX, Dai)
- Users can also deposit fiat currency: Euro (needs advance verification)
- Receive instant loan according to your crypto holdings
- Withdraw loan amount to the bank or by stablecoins or spend loan amount by Nexo Card
- Make repayments at any time
Earn Interest
Lend USD, EURO, GBP or stablecoin to earn interest. Nexo provides a fixed interest of 8% annually with daily compounding. If the borrower is unable to pay the loan amount or interest then the Nexo platform will pay the interest from borrower holdings until the balance becomes zero.
Nexo Platform will provide a loan of 50-55% of the user’s total crypto holdings. If you deposit 1 Bitcoin (Bitcoin price at the time of writing is $10,300) into the Nexo account you can take a loan of $5460 (53% of total holdings).
7 EthLend
EthLend cryptocurrency lending platform connects lenders and borrowers. Everything between lenders and borrowers is settled by smart contracts run on Ethereum Blockchain.
EthLend is a decentralized lending application (dApps) that provides peer-to-peer deals backed by smart contracts.
EthLend cryptocurrency lending platform removes the control and power held by central banks or third-parties that takes heavy commission and documentation to approve a loan. EthLend provides a peer-to-peer connection between lenders and borrowers to decide the terms of the loan without the requirement of a middleman or any third parties. Both borrowers and lenders can create a contract according to their needs without any geological barriers.
Advantages of EthLend
- Zero Fees Lending
- Peer-to-Peer decentralized platform
- Support Different Crypto Assets
- Collateral Management
- Run-on Smart Contract
The EthLend platform has its native token LEND that will be used as collateral or pay interest of the loan. Both Lenders and borrowers get additional benefits if they use LEND tokens. EthLend gives a 50% loan of your holdings and 55% if you hold LEND Token.
8 SALT (Secured Automated Lending Technology)
SALT cryptocurrency lending platform provides blockchain-backed loans. The SALT platform allows users to take a loan on their crypto holdings. This is a great way to deal with expenses without actually selling your crypto assets.
The SALT Lending platform is the first crypto assets backed lending platform that provides crypto holders with the liquidity without actually selling their assets.
SALT tokens are based on Ethereum blockchain (ERC-20 tokens) and can be used as collateral or to reduce the interest rates of the loan.
The eligibility criteria for taking a loan very clear, the borrower must buy the SALT subscription. There are multiple subscription packages available on the platform according to one’s needs.
There are three membership packages available:
- Base (1 SALT/year)
- Premier (10 SALT/year)
- Enterprise (100 SALT/year)
Higher membership means that the borrower can borrow more money on loans, flexible loan terms and early access to all new products, portfolio management, and credit/debit cards.
SALT cryptocurrency lending platform does not check borrower credit card score, SALT only do Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti Money Laundering (AML) verification.
Advantages of SALT Cryptocurrency Lending Platform
- Provides Up to 70% Loan to Value (LIV)
- SALT Tokens Priced Higher on Lending platform
- Support Multiple Crypto Assets as Collateral
- Not Force Fix Timeframe
- Flexible Intrest Rate
The SALT platform has variable interest rates that start from 10% and go to 18% annually depending on the interval of loan and Loan-to-Value (LTV).
The SALT platform has a major disadvantage that the minimum loan amount is $5000 and the maximum loan amount is $25,000. EthLend and Nexo provide loans starting from $100.
9 BlockFi Cryptocurrency Lending Platform
BlockFi is located in New York and only provides loans and lending services to US citizens. BlockFi allows Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH) and Litecoin (LTC) as collateral. BlockFi provides service in 35 different US states.
BlockFi Interest Account (BIA) allows users to earn up to 8.6% annually on their crypto assets. The lender needs to deposit his/her crypto assets and earn monthly returns. The interest is compounded monthly and can give up to an 8.6% annual return.
There are additional benefits for institutional borrowers that use the BlockFi cryptocurrency lending platform. Institutional borrowers have access to fiat liquidity and support daily business expenses and more.
BlockFi gives the loan by starting interest rates of 4.5% annually. Interest rates may vary with the loan amount, Loan-to-value selection and loan duration. The minimum loan amount anyone can take is $10,000.
Advantages of BlockFi Cryptocurrency Lending Platform
- Earn Up to 8.6% with Intrest Account
- 50% Loan-to-Value (LTV) ratio
- Borrow Intrest Rate Starts from 4.5%
- Flexible Loan Duration Up to 12 Months
Disadvantages of BlockFi Cryptocurrency Lending Platform
- Only Available for U.S Citizens
- Needs Additional KYC (Know Your Customer)
- Minimum Loan Amount is $10,000
10 Advantages of Cryptocurrency Lending Platforms
Earn Interest by Lending on the Platform
Cryptocurrency lending platforms give interest in crypto assets. Lenders can grow their crypto assets without doing anything. The average interest rates for lenders are about 7-12% depending on the platform and lending period duration. Lenders just need to deposit the crypto assets and see their portfolio growing every month.
Take Money into Banks without Selling Crypto Assets
By using a cryptocurrency lending platform anyone can take loans to meet their short term funding goals and expenses and also want to see their crypto assets value going up in the long term. Selling cryptocurrencies also trigger tax consequences, making this option less desirable. Some people don’t want to sell their Bitcoin (BTC) for short term expenses instead they take a loan on their crypto assets using any of these cryptocurrency lending platforms.
Instant Loan
Cryptocurrency lending platforms give instant loans. If you want to take a loan from a traditional bank that requires a lot of documentation work and will take 2-4 weeks usually. On the other hand, cryptocurrency lending platforms provide loans without any documentation works. You can take a loan instantly after depositing your funds on the platform. Some cryptocurrency lending platforms give loan without KYC (Know Your Customer) or with basic verification.
11 Disadvantages of Cryptocurrency Lending Platforms
Hacking Issue
The cryptocurrency lending platform website may be hacked and the hacker will delete all the data of website. In this case, the platform does not know how much crypto assets you are holding in your account and how much amount is on lending. The hacker may also steal the crypto assets from the platform cold wallet.
Low Privacy
Almost all the cryptocurrency lending platforms (except P2P cryptocurrency lending platforms) will take passport/ driving license or any government approved identity proof for KYC (Know Your Customer) and AML (Anti Money Laundering) verification. The lending platform may sell your data to other companies for their own profits.
Not Your Keys Not Your Coins
All the crypto assets are stored on the platform wallets. If you have no access to the private keys of the wallet you are storing your funds, logically the funds do not belong to you. The cryptocurrency lending platform has all access to your funds and maybe run away when they have enough funds that fulfill their desires.
Crypto Assets are Locked on Platform
When you put your crypto assets on lending or take a loan from the platform the crypto assets are locked for a certain period. In peer-to-peer cryptocurrency lending platforms, everything is handled by smart contracts, so your funds are stuck until the borrower pays you the loan amount or interest. If you need your crypto assets in any urgency you can’t withdrawal from the platform. The platform can also delay withdrawals of crypto assets and can pay a very little fee (you will receive the crypto assets after a few hours or days).
Miss the selling opportunity on Pump
The bitcoin and crypto market is known for its high volatility. The price of Bitcoin may increase more than $1,000 within a few hours. If you don’t have your crypto assets in your wallet (only you have the private key of the wallet) then you will miss the opportunity. The price may again fall to the same price in hours and you miss the opportunity to make good money in a few hours.
High Intrest Rate
There are many advantages of cryptocurrency lending platforms but this may one of the biggest disadvantages. The cryptocurrency lending platform gives loans starting from 5% annually to 17% annually. The interest rate will vary with the time frame of loan and amount of loan. Lending Platforms are not good for taking a loan for the long term.
12 Conclusion
We have given you the best cryptocurrency lending platform based on our deep research. There are many lending platforms that gives more features and interest rate but we choose these based on their user adoption, token exchanges, team activity, and technical support. You should do your own research before making any decision. Cryptocurrency lending platforms are a good way to tackle your monthly expense but we don’t recommend you put all your funds on a cryptocurrency lending platform. We have explained the advantages and disadvantages of cryptocurrency lending platforms. Always keep in my one rule “Never invest more than you can’t afford to lose”.