Lending

Lending protocols form the backbone of the decentralized money market, allowing users to lend or borrow digital assets without intermediaries. Using smart contracts, platforms like Aave and Morpho automate interest rates based on supply and demand while requiring over-collateralization for security. The 2026 lending landscape features advanced permissionless vaults and institutional-grade credit lines. This tag covers the evolution of capital efficiency, liquidations, and the integration of diverse collateral types, including LSTs and tokenized RWAs.

15660 Articles
Created: 2026/02/02 18:52
Updated: 2026/02/02 18:52
New lending protocols inch along in potential boon for ‘underbanked’

New lending protocols inch along in potential boon for ‘underbanked’

Crypto isn’t just for high-net-worth traders with an appetite for risk, but can also help the poor, according to the industry and its cheerleaders. Take US Representative Ritchie Torres, a Democrat from the Bronx, who took to the stage at a conference hosted by Ripple earlier this month to wax lyrical about how blockchain has the potential to “liberate the lowest income from the long delays and high fees of the traditional financial system.” Now, crypto venture capital firm Paradigm is promoting that narrative with a new report —“Bridging the Gap: How Crypto Expands Financial Access for America’s Underbanked” — that’s based, in part, on interviews with 11 crypto users. Before we continue, let’s note two things. First, given that the Pew Research Center’s data suggests that 17% of the 342 million people in the US have used crypto, this would mean this survey represents 0.00001% of crypto users in the States. Secondly, the interviewees aren’t exactly a portrait of the down-and-out: Eight have a college degree or higher. And its definition of “underbanked” — “a banked person who uses nonbank products … to meet core financial needs” — appears overly broad. Would splitting the cheque for dinner with Venmo make me an underbanked American? Nevertheless, it arguably provides a useful window into people’s feelings about the legacy financial system and the ways crypto can improve upon it. For example, 10 of the 11 said they used crypto in part because they distrusted traditional banks. “They doubted banks would process transactions reliably, keep accounts open, or avoid freezing funds without cause,” Paradigm writes. Several respondents found international transfers much easier with crypto. One said it solved his issues accepting cross-border payments. Another said it saved his grandmother’s life — crypto transfers enabled him to quickly pay for her emergency medical services in West Africa. To be sure, it’s in Paradigm’s interest to push this narrative. Congressional Democrats are the biggest obstacle to industry-friendly legislation. They fear it will undermine century-old legislation intended to protect retail investors. Perhaps they’ll come around if they see crypto the way Torres does — as a way to liberate those same investors from the clutches of predatory banks that have become Too Big to Fail. But the narrative has its flaws. Banks don’t just facilitate transfers. They also provide credit. It’s how regular people buy homes, start businesses. But borrowing crypto is quite difficult if you don’t have money already. Lending protocols are typically overcollateralised. That means borrowers must put up assets worth more than the crypto they’re borrowing. Lending is the largest sub-sector in DeFi, with more than $64 billion in total value locked, according to DefiLlama data. Uncollateralised lending? That’s in 48th place, with just $14 million in invested assets. That is likely an undercount, but not by much. New protocols are trying to fix this. In September, Wildcat Labs raised $3.5 million to fund its mission to make “private credit public” via peer-to-peer undercollateralised lending. “Wildcat started out with the joking slogan of ‘Banking, but worse,’” it wrote when it announced the raise. “Now, we’re going to start taking bites out of banking itself.” But it doesn’t allow individual borrowers, and it doesn’t check for creditworthiness, putting the burden of due diligence on its lenders. Another upstart, 3Jane, has taken a different approach and also enjoyed modest success — its deposits have grown almost tenfold, to $19 million, over the past week. The protocol lets users borrow USDC against their real-world credit scores. Perhaps this will bring crypto lending to the masses. The only hitch? Before they can borrow, they have to connect their bank accounts. Alas, the unbanked will have to continue waiting for an alternative to the legacy financial system. Top DeFi stories of the weekThis week in DeFi governance VOTE: Uniswap DAO votes on UNI fee switchVOTE: ZKsync votes to upgrade ZK token with permissionless burn functionVOTE: Gnosis DAO votes to terminate contract with KarpatkeyPost of the week The internet was nigh unusable this morning. But that didn’t affect unstoppable, censorship-resistant financial applications, right? watching my favorite decentralized censorship-resistant unstoppable crypto web3 app get eviscerated because "cloudflare went down" pic.twitter.com/XUEhUQZuLz— nader dabit (@dabit3) November 18, 2025Aleks Gilbert is DL News’ New York-based DeFi correspondent. Have a tip? You can reach him at [email protected].

Author: Coinstats
Is Shiba Inu (SHIB) Still Worth Buying? Investors Prefer This New Crypto With Real Utility in 2025

Is Shiba Inu (SHIB) Still Worth Buying? Investors Prefer This New Crypto With Real Utility in 2025

With Shiba Inu (SHIB), struggling to gain and keep the required pace in the crypto market of 2025, smart and shrewd investors are beginning to look elsewhere for projects with utility value and growth value. One token gaining popularity in DeFi is Mutuum Finance (MUTM), which is still only going for $0.035 and is already […]

Author: Cryptopolitan
Best crypto tax tools 2025

Best crypto tax tools 2025

Forecast and calculate your crypto taxes quickly with the best software for crypto taxes. This roundup features the most user-friendly crypto tax tools, from  simple calculators to advanced platforms for analyzing your transactions. 5 reasons you need a crypto tax…

Author: Crypto.news
Tether Backs Bitcoin-Focused Lending Platform Ledn With Strategic Investment

Tether Backs Bitcoin-Focused Lending Platform Ledn With Strategic Investment

Tether believes that Ledn has the capacity to expand retail and institutional access to credit as the bitcoin-backed market enters a phase of significant growth.

Author: CryptoPotato
New crypto incubator Obex has raised $37 million to support yield-generating stablecoins.

New crypto incubator Obex has raised $37 million to support yield-generating stablecoins.

PANews reported on November 18th that, according to CoinDesk, the team behind the new crypto incubator Obex announced in an interview that it has raised $37 million to support the development of a next-generation yield-generating stablecoin led by Framework Ventures, LayerZero, and the Sky ecosystem. The initiative aims to invest in and fund projects that bring real-world asset-backed strategies to on-chain, introducing institutional-grade risk control and underwriting practices to this rapidly evolving field. Obex will become Sky's latest fund allocator, providing financial support to help the project scale from the protocol's large reserves and generate yields through strategies. The program will focus on stablecoins backed by high-quality real-world assets, with a focus on three core areas: computational credit (such as tokenized GPU infrastructure), energy assets (such as municipal-grade solar and battery deployments), and lending to large fintech companies. The incubator will provide early-stage teams with funding, technical resources, and access to Sky's infrastructure for 12-week projects. Teams that pass risk and governance reviews may be eligible for additional funding from Sky. Sky recently authorized the deployment of up to $2.5 billion in USDS to the Obex project in a governance vote.

Author: PANews
Whales Are Rushing to Buy This $0.035 New Crypto Token Before It Hits $0.06, Analysts Explain

Whales Are Rushing to Buy This $0.035 New Crypto Token Before It Hits $0.06, Analysts Explain

There is a new change taking place in the market. Mass adoption for a new crypto coin priced at only $0.035, large buyers are migrating quickly. It is thought that it might be one of the most perfect crypto opportunities before Q1 2026. Whales do not very often remain without reason, and there is increasing […]

Author: Cryptopolitan
Zircuit Finance Unveils Institutional Yield Platform With Monarq, FalconX, and Forteus to Restore Trust in Onchain Finance

Zircuit Finance Unveils Institutional Yield Platform With Monarq, FalconX, and Forteus to Restore Trust in Onchain Finance

[PRESS RELEASE – George Town, Cayman Islands, November 18th, 2025] Zircuit, a zero-knowledge blockchain backed by YZiLabs, Dragonfly, and Pantera, today announced the launch of Zircuit Finance, a platform to address the credit and security risks in DeFi. With $3 billion in assets secured to date, Zircuit Finance is a secure platform for institutional-grade strategies, […]

Author: CryptoPotato
Tether Moves Into Bitcoin-Backed Lending With Strategic Ledn Stake

Tether Moves Into Bitcoin-Backed Lending With Strategic Ledn Stake

The post Tether Moves Into Bitcoin-Backed Lending With Strategic Ledn Stake appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. The digital asset firm Tether has made a strategic investment in Ledn, a leading platform for bitcoin-backed loans, signaling a significant move within the growing cryptocurrency lending sector. The deal aims to expand opportunities for borrowers to use their bitcoin as collateral for cash loans without selling their holdings. Tether Invests in Lending Platform Ledn […] Source: https://news.bitcoin.com/tether-moves-into-bitcoin-backed-lending-with-strategic-ledn-stake/

Author: BitcoinEthereumNews
BlockchainFX Price Prediction: Tether Commits $1.5B to Commodity Lending, as DeepSnitch AI Looks to Outperform BFX’s Forecast

BlockchainFX Price Prediction: Tether Commits $1.5B to Commodity Lending, as DeepSnitch AI Looks to Outperform BFX’s Forecast

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Author: Blockchainreporter
Tether Invests in Ledn to Boost Bitcoin-Backed Lending

Tether Invests in Ledn to Boost Bitcoin-Backed Lending

The post Tether Invests in Ledn to Boost Bitcoin-Backed Lending appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com. Key Points: Tether’s investment in Ledn aims to expand Bitcoin-backed lending. Potential significant growth in the lending market. Ledn’s infrastructure ensures secure digital asset loans. Tether Ltd. announced its strategic investment in Bitcoin-backed loan provider Ledn Inc. on November 18, aiming to enhance Bitcoin lending and expand credit accessibility in retail and institutional markets. This investment positions Ledn to leverage Tether’s vast resources, potentially catalyzing growth in Bitcoin-backed lending, with significant implications for market dynamics and institutional engagement. Tether’s Strategic Move into Bitcoin Lending Market Tether, a major player in the cryptocurrency space, announced a strategic investment in the Bitcoin-backed lending platform, Ledn. This investment is aimed at expanding lending options and increasing credit accessibility in both retail and institutional markets. Tether’s involvement highlights its commitment to scaling Bitcoin-backed financial products. This investment aligns with Tether’s strategic direction in democratizing finance and enhancing liquidity. By targeting Bitcoin, a heavily traded digital asset, Tether is poised to enhance the accessibility and reliability of cryptocurrency-backed loans in financial sectors worldwide. Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, highlighted the involvement of major financial institutions and said, “Major financial institutions and banks will be able to fully unleash the power behind assets like USDT.” This statement emphasizes Tether’s intention to capitalize on large-scale utility with stablecoins. Bitcoin Price and Potential Regulatory Impact Did you know? Historical expansions by Tether have involved increasing its physical asset reserves. This tradition continues as Tether uses its reserves to fortify new lending channels, consistently blending crypto liquidity with real-world finance. According to CoinMarketCap, Bitcoin’s current price stands at $91,045.13 with a market cap of over $1.82 trillion, demonstrating its dominant position in the crypto market. Despite a recent 3.44% price drop in 24 hours and significant decreases over the last 90 days, Ethereum hasn’t shown material impacts directly related…

Author: BitcoinEthereumNews