Crypto loans · Crypto financing · Bitcoin OTC
Crypto loans against bitcoin and ether, without selling
- The lender sets every term
- Custody and margin mechanics published in full
- No rates quoted, no rankings
Crypto loans are collateralized loans: you borrow US dollars or stablecoins against bitcoin, ether or spot bitcoin ETF shares that you keep, and the lender may sell that collateral if its value falls too far. They are not unsecured loans, and not DeFi flash loans. Crypto Loans HQ introduces borrowers of US$100,000 or more to third-party lenders; it does not lend.
Key information
- US$100,000Working minimum for a crypto loan enquiry
- US$250,000Working minimum for a bitcoin OTC trade
- 20–75%Starting loan-to-value (LTV) ratios lenders published against bitcoin and ether
- 24–48 hrsMargin-call cure windows lenders published
Key takeaways
- Two introductions, one model. Loans start at US$100,000 and bitcoin OTC trades at US$250,000. These are working minimums, not a promise that an enquiry of that size will be placed.
- The lender sets every term. Loan-to-value, rate, term, custody and liquidation rules come from the lender's own documents. We introduce; we do not lend, trade or hold assets.
- Starting LTVs ran between 20% and 75%. That is what lenders published against bitcoin and ether in September 2026, with 50% the most common figure; one lender published up to 90% against major stablecoins.
- Custody terms decide what happens in a lender failure. On 9 November 2023 the Celsius bankruptcy court held that collateral posted by retail borrowers who objected to the plan was property of the estate.
- A liquidation is a sale. In many jurisdictions taking the loan is not itself a disposal, but a forced sale of collateral generally is, with tax consequences.
Loan-to-value
See how far the collateral can fall
Enter the value of what you hold, a starting loan-to-value and the thresholds in the loan documents. The calculator shows the loan and the price falls that reach a margin call and a liquidation.
Crypto financing, by structure
Six kinds of enquiry, one introduction process
From a personal loan against bitcoin to a facility for a company that holds it in treasury. Each page sets out how lenders structure that kind of credit, what they publish, and what an enquiry needs.
Crypto financing
Term loans, revolving lines, corporate facilities and purchase funding against crypto you keep, compared side by side.
Read about crypto financingBitcoin-backed loans
The starting LTVs, margin-call levels, cure windows and custody arrangements lenders publish for loans against bitcoin.
Read about bitcoin-backed loansBorrow against Ethereum
Ether as collateral, which lenders accept it, and how spot ETF shares differ from coins held in a wallet.
Read about ether collateralBitcoin treasury financing
Bitcoin-backed credit for companies, miners and funds that hold bitcoin on the balance sheet.
Read about treasury financingCrypto loans for private clients
Custody, borrowing entity, margin mechanics and tax questions for high-net-worth holders and family offices.
Read the private-client guideBitcoin OTC
Buying or selling US$250,000 or more with a desk that quotes the whole ticket, rather than through an exchange order book.
Read about bitcoin OTCHow a crypto loan works
A lender advances US dollars or a stablecoin against collateral you transfer to it or to a custodian it names. The loan is sized by loan-to-value (LTV): the loan balance divided by the current market value of the collateral. Starting LTVs that lenders published in September 2026 ran between 20% and 75% against bitcoin and ether, and 50% was the most common figure; one lender published up to 90% against major stablecoins.
The LTV moves whenever the market does. If the collateral's price falls, the LTV rises. At a threshold written into the loan documents the lender issues a margin call, asking you to add collateral or repay part of the loan within a stated window. If the LTV keeps rising to the liquidation threshold, the lender sells collateral: some lenders sell only enough to restore a target LTV, others enough to repay the whole balance.
The table shows how far the collateral's price has to fall before a loan written at 50% LTV reaches the thresholds that lenders published. It is arithmetic, not a forecast.
| Fall in collateral price | Collateral value | LTV | Thresholds lenders published at this level (September 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0% | US$2,000,000 | 50% | Ledn's "typical" starting LTV; Galaxy's origination LTV on its GalaxyOne line of credit |
| 23.1% | US$1,538,462 | 65% | Xapo Bank asks for more collateral or a part repayment above 65% |
| 28.6% | US$1,428,571 | 70% | Arch margin call; Ledn's first notification |
| 37.5% | US$1,250,000 | 80% | Ledn automatic liquidation; Xapo Bank sells collateral; Arch partial liquidation |
| 44.4% | US$1,111,111 | 90% | Figure automatic liquidation (loans at 50% initial LTV); SALT's margin event is at 90.91% |
| Arithmetic: LTV = loan ÷ collateral value, with the loan held at US$1,000,000 and accrued interest ignored. Thresholds from each lender's own pages, accessed 19 September 2026 (sources below). Ranges lenders published as of September 2026; terms depend on the lender, the collateral and the borrower, and are set only by the lender. | |||
Two details in a term sheet matter as much as the headline LTV. The first is the cure window: Unchained and Arch published 24 hours to answer a margin call, and Figure 48 hours. The second is what a liquidation sells, only enough to restore the LTV or the whole position. The page on bitcoin-backed loans sets out what each lender publishes, and the guide to bitcoin loan margin calls walks through a call from trigger to sale.
Risk
Risks to weigh before borrowing
- Margin calls and forced liquidation. A fall in the collateral's price raises the LTV. The lender can demand more collateral or a part repayment within a short window, 24 or 48 hours at the lenders cited above, and sells collateral if the call is not met or the liquidation threshold is reached. A fast fall can reach that threshold before you can act.
- Counterparty and custody risk. Your collateral sits with the lender or its custodian. If the contract lets the lender re-use it (rehypothecation) and the lender becomes insolvent, you may be left with a creditor's claim. Celsius, BlockFi and Genesis all filed for Chapter 11 in 2022 and 2023, and in Celsius the court held that objecting retail borrowers' collateral was property of the estate.
- Tax on a liquidation. A liquidation is a sale of your collateral, and a sale is generally a taxable event, at a moment you did not choose. Some lender structures that transfer ownership of the collateral can be a disposal as well. Take advice from a tax adviser before borrowing.
- Counterparty, settlement and scam risk on large trades. A bitcoin OTC trade exposes you to the desk until both legs settle. Crypto payments typically cannot be reversed, and the FTC warns that scammers impersonate established companies, government agencies and law enforcement.
Custody is covered in depth in bitcoin loan rehypothecation and custody, and tax in are crypto loans taxable.
Borrow against it, or sell it?
Borrowing keeps the position and adds a liquidation trigger; selling removes both the position and the trigger. The comparison below is general. The guide to borrowing against bitcoin instead of selling works through the trade-off in detail.
| Question | Sell | Borrow against it |
|---|---|---|
| Cash raised | The sale proceeds, less costs | A loan sized by the lender's LTV; 50% was the most common starting figure published |
| Exposure to the price afterwards | None | Kept, while the collateral is pledged |
| Tax at the outset | A sale is generally a taxable disposal | In many jurisdictions taking a loan is not itself a disposal |
| What can force a sale later | Nothing further | A margin call not met, or the LTV reaching the liquidation level |
| Ongoing cost | None | Interest and fees, set by the lender |
| Counterparty exposure | Until the trade settles | To the lender and its custodian for the life of the loan |
| General comparison, not advice. Tax treatment depends on the jurisdiction and on the lender's structure; a liquidation is generally a disposal. | ||
Bitcoin OTC for large trades
A bitcoin OTC desk quotes a price for the whole ticket and trades with you bilaterally, rather than letting a large order work through an exchange order book, where it can move the price against you. Desks differ in how they do it. Cumberland states that it is a principal trading firm that trades for its own account at its own risk, and that its trades settle after execution, often in less than 24 hours (Cumberland, accessed September 2026).
Bitcoin OTC enquiries start at US$250,000, for a large bitcoin purchase by wire or for a sale, including an inherited position (selling bitcoin OTC). Each desk runs its own onboarding, identity and anti-money-laundering checks before it quotes. The guide what is OTC bitcoin trading explains pricing and settlement.
Who we work with
Built for holders with size, and the advisers who act for them
Every enquiry starts at US$100,000 for a loan or US$250,000 for a bitcoin OTC trade. Every lender and desk carries out its own identity verification and anti-money-laundering checks before it lends or trades.
High-net-worth holders and founders
Individuals
Individuals, and founders or early employees with a concentrated position they would rather not sell.
Single- and multi-family offices
Family offices
Offices borrowing against, or trading, a crypto allocation held for a family or its entities.
Bitcoin treasury companies
Companies
Companies holding bitcoin on the balance sheet that want credit against it without selling it.
Bitcoin miners
Miners
Miners seeking credit against the bitcoin they hold, alongside or instead of equipment finance.
Funds and managers
Funds
Funds borrowing against, or trading in size, bitcoin and ether positions.
Executors and trustees
Estates
Estates and trusts holding inherited crypto that need liquidity or an orderly sale.
Advisers, including RIAs, private bankers, accountants and lawyers, can make an enquiry for a client: see crypto loan referrals for advisers. The service is not built for loans under US$100,000, unsecured borrowing, tokens other than bitcoin, ether, major stablecoins and spot ETF shares, lending crypto out for a return, or retail consumers in the United Kingdom. The full criteria are on who we work with.
How an introduction works
Four stages, from enquiry to documentation
You contract with the lender or desk directly. We never hold collateral, funds or trade proceeds, and we may be paid by the firms we introduce enquiries to (how we are paid).
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Enquiry
You tell us the asset, the approximate size, whether you want to borrow or trade, where you live or where your organization is established, and what kind of client you are. No documents are needed at this stage.
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Qualification
We check the enquiry against the criteria lenders and desks publish: minimum size, accepted collateral, borrower type and jurisdiction. An enquiry that fits no counterparty's criteria is not taken further.
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Introduction
Where criteria fit, and with your consent, we present the enquiry to the lender or desk. It runs its own identity verification, anti-money-laundering and source-of-funds checks.
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Terms and documentation
The lender or desk sets the terms and you contract with it directly. We stay with the enquiry to documentation.
Guides
Mechanism and risk detail, published in full
No gated downloads. Each guide answers one question a lender's product page leaves open, with primary sources linked.
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Guide
How do crypto loans work
From collateral transfer to repayment, and why unsecured and flash loans are a different product.
- Collateral
- LTV
- Repayment
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Guide
Bitcoin loan margin calls
How LTV thresholds trigger, what a cure costs, and how partial and full liquidations differ.
- Margin call
- Liquidation
- Cure window
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Guide
Custody and rehypothecation
Who holds the collateral, when a lender may re-use it, and what the lender failures of 2022 and 2023 showed.
- Custody
- Rehypothecation
- Multisig
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Guide
Are crypto loans taxable?
What IRS and HMRC guidance says, what it leaves open, and why a liquidation is the taxable moment.
- Tax
- IRS
- HMRC
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Guide
Borrow against bitcoin instead of selling
The trade-off between keeping the position with a liquidation trigger and selling it outright.
- Borrow or sell
- Tax
-
Guide
Bitcoin mortgages
The two products that share the name, what lenders publish, and what the FHFA order did and did not change.
- Mortgages
- FHFA
All seven guides, including what is OTC bitcoin trading, are listed on the guides hub, and the terms used across the site are defined in the glossary.
Crypto loans: frequently asked questions
Does Crypto Loans HQ lend money or trade bitcoin?
No. Crypto Loans HQ is an introduction service. It qualifies enquiries and introduces them to third-party lenders and OTC desks whose published criteria fit. The lender or desk sets the terms, runs its own identity and anti-money-laundering checks, and contracts with you directly. Crypto Loans HQ does not hold collateral, funds or trade proceeds.
What is the minimum size for an enquiry?
The working minimums are US$100,000 for a loan and US$250,000 for a bitcoin OTC trade. Meeting a minimum does not mean an enquiry will be placed, because each lender or desk applies its own criteria on size, collateral, borrower type and jurisdiction.
How much can I borrow against bitcoin or ether?
Lenders size a crypto loan by loan-to-value (LTV): the loan divided by the collateral's market value. Starting LTVs published against bitcoin and ether in September 2026 ran between 20% and 75%, and 50% was the most common, so US$1,000,000 of bitcoin at 50% supports a US$500,000 loan. The lender sets the LTV; a lower one leaves more room before a margin call.
What collateral can I borrow against?
Bitcoin and ether, and spot bitcoin or ether ETF shares, which are securities held at a broker. Lenders differ: some lend only against bitcoin, others also accept ether. Loans against ETF shares run through a broker's margin account or a securities-backed line of credit, under securities rules rather than crypto loan terms.
What does an introduction add that I could not do myself?
Nothing stops you approaching a lender or a desk directly, and several publish their terms and minimums on their own sites. What an introduction adds is the qualification step: matching what you hold and what you need it to do against the published criteria of firms that take that size, so the enquiry goes to counterparties it can fit, and someone stays with it to documentation.
What happens to my collateral if the lender fails?
That depends on the loan contract and the custody arrangement. If the terms let the lender re-use collateral, a bankruptcy court may treat it as the lender's property: on 9 November 2023 the Celsius court held that collateral from retail borrowers who objected to the plan was property of the estate. Segregated custody and multisig structures are intended to keep collateral apart from the lender.
Seventeen more answers are on the frequently asked questions page.
General information, not advice. This page describes crypto-backed loans and bitcoin OTC trading in general terms. It is not an offer to lend, to arrange a loan on particular terms, or to buy or sell any asset, and it is not investment, legal or tax advice. Firms are named only to describe what they published, as dated; naming a firm is not a recommendation and implies no relationship with Crypto Loans HQ. Terms are set only by the lender or desk. Take advice from a qualified tax adviser before borrowing against, or selling, a crypto asset. How we are paid.
Primary sources
- Ledn: Bitcoin-backed loans (accessed September 2026)
- Xapo Bank: Borrow (accessed September 2026)
- Arch: When do I get margin called or partially liquidated? (updated 30 March 2026)
- Figure: Crypto-backed loans FAQ (accessed September 2026)
- SALT: Understanding LTV and margin calls (dated 26 March 2026)
- Unchained: What is the margin call process? (accessed September 2026)
- Galaxy: Crypto Portfolio Line of Credit on GalaxyOne (25 August 2026)
- Nexo: Borrow (accessed September 2026)
- US Bankruptcy Court, S.D.N.Y.: In re Celsius Network LLC, memorandum opinion of 9 November 2023
- Kroll: Genesis Global Holdco, LLC Chapter 11 case information
- US Bankruptcy Court, District of New Jersey: BlockFi Inc. case information
- Cumberland: FAQ (accessed September 2026)
- Federal Trade Commission: What to know about cryptocurrency and scams
- Internal Revenue Service: Frequently asked questions on virtual currency transactions
- HM Revenue and Customs: Cryptoassets Manual, CRYPTO61640 (DeFi lending: collateral)
Private enquiries
Tell us what you hold and what you need it to do.
Share the asset, the approximate size and whether you want to borrow against it or trade it. We check the enquiry against lenders' and desks' published criteria and, where one fits, arrange an introduction. No terms exist until a lender or desk sets them.