The Top 5 Platforms for Crypto Collateralized Loans
There are now a growing number of crypto finance platforms that enable HODLers to borrow for necessary expenses - while continuing to hold their assets for gains over the longer term.
In early May of 2021, the crypto markets saw a significant correction following a series of Bitcoin and Ethereum rallies. In the wake of this crash, investors were faced with a dilemma – should they cash out now or keep HODLing in the hopes of their assets pumping again? But what if, right after the correction, you need to sell your investments because you truly need the cash for an expense? If you sell at a low, you’ll lose money if you bought when the price was higher.
Crypto collateralized loans present an exciting alternative: instead of deciding between selling or HODLing, you can choose to use your cryptocurrencies as collateral instead. That way, as the bear market looms, you can keep your crypto investments while getting cash for your everyday needs. Crypto-collateralized loans platforms provide such services, and the demand for these kinds of loans has been increasing each year tremendously.
As a result, the worldwide Crypto-collateralized lending market has seen a 1170% growth since 2019, with nearly $30 billion leveraged as collateral today. Many players today offer crypto-collateralized loans, and here is a selection of the top 5.
Nebeus
Nebeus (developed and operated by Money-4 Limited & Rintral Trading SL) is a crypto-collateralized lending platform and app that allows you to borrow, exchange, earn, and insure digital assets with a $100m insurance policy. Nebeus’s core product is crypto-collateralized loans, but the platform offers a whole ecosystem of crypto & fintech services.
Through Nebeus, you can get loans in USD, EUR, GBP, or Stablecoins, using either their quick loans or flexible loans option. Best of all, crypto that you deposit as collateral for a loan will be covered by a $100m insurance policy by Lloyd’s of London.
Another unique feature that Nebeus offers is its proprietary loan health monitor and automatic margin call services that will automatically manage your collateral if crypto prices suddenly drop and you approach a margin call. This automated service can save your collateral from being liquidated in a highly volatile situation, which is a huge plus and can bring you peace of mind during your loan period.The Nebeus app is now available
Nebeus just recently released its iOS and Android apps, so download the app and give the platform a try!
BlockFi
BlockFi is one of the fastest-growing crypto-collateralized platforms, primarily operating in the USA and only giving out loans in USD. It recently closed a massive $350 million Series D investment round that valued it at $3 billion.
BlockFi offers crypto services to both consumers and institutional customers, with crypto-collateralized loans being their primary service. Additionally, like many other crypto-collateralized loans platforms, you can also use BlockFi to earn a yield on your crypto holdings by depositing your funds into a savings account. To make things more exciting, the platform is launching a crypto credit card that gives you 1.5% cash back rewards in Bitcoin. Unfortunately, the crypto card only works in the USA, so if you’re a lucky USA resident, you should definitely give BlockFi a try.
YouHodler
YouHodler is a Switzerland-based platform launched in 2018, which uses a popular colloquial crypto term to ‘HODL.’ This means to "Hold on for Dear Life" to your assets and not sell them despite crypto volatility. YouHodler offers crypto-collateralized loans with some of the highest LTV rates on the market. The platform also allows people to earn from their crypto, offering very high APYs on their savings accounts.
Beyond this, what also makes YouHolder unique is its MultiHODL function. This feature allows you to initiate a chain of loans by leveraging your crypto automatically. This function can help boost your earnings in the case of crypto price growth, but be careful because you can lose just as quickly if crypto prices drop.
Crypto.com
Founded in 2016, Hong Kong based Crypto.com is a pioneer in the crypto loans space and offers borrowing and lending services along with a range of other crypto finance products like credit cards and an exchange.
Crypto.com claims over 10 million users. Its maximum loan to value ratio is 50% and collateralized assets held in cold storage are insured. Like many crypto-finance companies, Crypto.com has its own token called CRO – and customers who stake CRO with the company receive better interest rates and fees.
Celsius Network
Celsius Network was launched in 2017 as a simple digital wallet. Since then, they have entered the crypto-collateralized loans market and offer several loan options. By getting a loan on Celsius Network, you have the option of leveraging as many 36 different cryptocurrencies as collateral. In addition, if you own and hold Celsius’s native token, called CEL, you’ll have access to Celsius’s premium interest rates and discounts.
Celsius Network is said to have over 340,000 active users worldwide and boasts that it has more than $3 billion of assets under management. They are very popular on social networks, especially on YouTube, bringing weekly live events to its users around the world. If you want to join a cool and hip crypto-collateralized loans platform, Celsius is a good option.
Conclusion
There is no shortage of ways that allow you to use your cryptocurrencies as collateral to get loans. Each platform in this list is a great platform, so you would need to choose based on the brand, positioning, and services that each one offers. One thing that is for sure is that crypto-collateralized lending has a bright future in the crypto world: some say the whole market size will reach $990 billion very soon!
Editorial Note: This is a sponsored article. Opinions expressed are solely those of the sponsor and readers should conduct their own due diligence before taking any action based on information presented in this article.
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