Last Updated on 8 January 2021 by CryptoTips.eu

Top 5 crypto lending platforms to borrow and lend in [jaar]

The year [jaar] seems to be all about DeFi platforms, crypto lending and borrowing. With this new hype a lot of new crypto lending platforms are popping up and they are getting immense popular. These crypto lending platforms are interesting for people who need liquidity and people who want to generate a passive income.

Please note that crypto lending is something else than cryptocurrency staking. Investors can borrow stablecoins (most of the time) and use their cryptocurrency as a collateral. This way they don’t have to spend their cryptocurrency or convert it into a fiat currency. To borrow from the platform they have to pay a percentage of interest. As a borrower you don’t need to perform any credit checks since you are using crypto as a collateral. This way the loan can be issued almost instantly.

On the other side of the transaction there are the lenders. These people lend their crypto to generate a passive income and build wealth. The interest the borrower pays goes to the lender (minus a fee for the platform).

So you can say that these platforms bring lenders and borrowers together. Below we show you the top 5 lending and borrowing sites you need to know about and everything you need to know about them.

Summary top 5 lending platforms:

  1. Binance: The world’s largest exchange with highly variable interest rates.
  2. Crypto.com: Big platform with interest rates of up to 6%.
  3. BlockFi: Large platform with financial licenses and interest rates up to 8.6%.
  4. Celsius Network: App with interest rates up to 22.4%.
  5. Nexo: Up to 10% interest per year.

Binance

The one and most important thing you need to know about this platform is how it works. Binance is worldwide known as the biggest cryptocurrency exchange, but nowadays they offer more, crypto-related, services.

How it works is that you, as an individual, will increase your wealth through procedures that will involve you lending assets to others on the same platform, in this case, margin traders. These margin traders will, in turn, pay your interest, and this will result in an increase of your funds. The best thing about this platform is the fact that it offers variety. This means you get to choose from a lot of different coins to lend. This offer changes regularly and there are also a lot of temporary special offers.

You can find this Binance service in the Finance tab by selecting Savings. You get to choose two options, Flexible Savings and Fixed Savings. In case you decide to go for Fixed Savings, it means you will be subscribing to locking your funds for a certain amount of time. With Flexible Savings, however, you will have the freedom to withdraw your funds at any time, and the interest rates, in this case, will vary over time. Your interest rate will be higher when you chose Fixed Savings for a longer period.

To get a loan from Binance you can go to Finance and click on Crypto Loans.

Binance interest rates:

  • Flexible Savings: 0% – 4%
  • Fixed Savings: 3% – 6.50%
  • Borrowing starts from 18%

Please note that the interest rates can differ a lot. Read more about Binance in our Binance review.

Crypto.com

Crypto.com is an all in one platform that offers various services ranging from buying, selling, and lending cryptocurrencies. Stakeholders can invest in the platforms native currency: CRO, but this doesn’t limit you from using other currencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. The platform works with you depositing your crypto as a collateral and you can get a loan immediately. The exciting thing about this platform is that there’s no set deadline to repay the loan, and the interest rates on loans are a bit lower compared to other crypto lending platforms.

As a lender, you don’t have to worry, as you can invest your assets on this platform and watch them earn a considerable interest. The platform has an online environment and a mobile application for iOS and Android, enhancing the easy transfer of tokens from your wallet to Crypto.com and vice versa.

Crypto.com interest rates

  • Crypto.com Earn (app): up to 6% CRO interest
  • Crypto.com Exchange: up to 6% CRO interest
  • Borrowing starts from 8%

Read more about Crypto.com in our Crypto.com review.

BlockFi

BlockFi is one of the most stable crypto lending platforms and, without a doubt, a newcomers’ favorite. The platform allows you to access a loan in a few minutes after your request, which attracts a lot of lenders and borrowers and making it very popular in the crypto market. 

The platform mainly focuses on Ethereum, Litecoin, and Bitcoin as the cryptos are allowed to be used as a security. The interesting thing about this platform is that it will enable you to change your fiat money to a stablecoin, and the most amazing thing is that it is to a 1-to-1 ratio. As a lender, the platform allows you to generate a passive income with your crypto, and you are also able to withdraw your funds at any given time. 

BlockFi interest rates

  • Earn up to 8.6% interest
  • Borrowing starts from 4.8%

Use their interest calculator to calculate your possible earnings.

Celsius Network

The Celsius Network platform has conquered a place in our crypto lending platform top 5 in [jaar] and is quickly becoming a favorite for many investors. All its features are accessible from a mobile phone and the platform is very user friendly.

When borrowing you will get access to fiat funds by using your crypto as your collateral, and by doing so, you will be paying minimal interests. If you are a lender on the search for a platform to lend with guaranteed interests, then this platform will also work for you. As a lender, it will generate a passive income in your Celsius Network digital wallet.

The platform has its native CEL token which gives you a higher interest rates when lending crypto or a rate when borrowing cash or stablecoins.

Celsius Network interest rates

  • Earn up to 22.4% interest
  • Borrowing starts from 1%

Nexo

Whenever top crypto lending platforms are being mentioned, whether for satisfaction or safety, this platform is mentioned among them. Nexo is so satisfying to many that it is considered to be the leading platform in the crypto loan industry with great potential to grow to an even bigger platform with years to come.

In the beginning, no one thought of getting a loan through blockchain-based assets, but it happens to be on everyone’s lips nowadays. Crypto lending as an industry has grown tremendously. The good thing about this platform is that it has made it possible to get instant cash by only using cryptocurrencies as a collateral.

Nexo interest rates

  • Earn up to 10% interest
  • Borrowing starts from 5.9%

Conclusion

If you need cash and you own some crypto, you can use the currency as a collateral to get a loan from a crypto lending platform. Your choice of the platform to use depends entirely on your needs, how fast you need the loan and the type of digital currency you own. Also the interest rate might be very important to you

As a lender, you want to see your assets gaining value over time, and therefore you can select your platform based on what you want to achieve at the end of the day. The interest rates on popular currencies are lower than when you use the platforms native token. When you use the native token, you also take the risk that the token can decrease in value.

The interest rates seem good to us, but please remember that you’re investing with a company. Each of these companies can go bankrupt and it’s not very clear what will happen with your funds. Some companies have insurances, but you should never transfer more funds than you’re willing to lose. It’s better to spread the risks and use multiple platforms in case something happens. The safest way to store you crypto will always be in a cold wallet.