Looking to take out a crypto loan? Here’s what you need to know
Loans based on cryptocurrencies have become a mainstay of the decentralized finance (DeFi) universe ever since the smart contract-based lending/borrowing platforms began offering the service to crypto users. The Ethereum network, the first blockchain that scaled the smart contract functionality, sees most of the total value locked (TVL) on DeFi protocols dominated by cryptocurrency lending platforms.
According to data from DeFi Pulse, the top 4 of 10 DeFi protocols are lending protocols that account for $37.04 billion in TVL, just 49% of TVL of the entire DeFi market on the Ethereum blockchain. Ethereum leads in terms of being the most utilized blockchain for the DeFi market and the TVL on the network. Maker and Aave are the biggest players here, with a TVL of $14.52 billion and $11.19 billion, respectively.
Even on other blockchain networks like Terra, Avalanche, Solana and BNB Chain, the adoption of cryptocurrency-based loans has been one of the main use cases of smart contracts in the world of DeFi. There are about 138 protocols that provide crypto loan-based services to users, amounting to a total TVL of $50.66 billion, according to DefiLlama. Apart from Aave and Maker, the other prominent players in this protocol category across blockchain networks are Compound, Anchor Protocol, Venus, JustLend, BENQI and Solend.
Johnny Lyu, the CEO of crypto exchange KuCoin, talked to Cointelegraph about the choice of blockchain networks for crypto lending. He said:
However, he didn’t negate the possibility of the emergence of a truly ideal blockchain for DeFi. Kiril Nikolov, DeFi strategist at Nexo — a cryptocurrency lending platform — seconded this view. He told Cointelegraph:
Considering that the liquidity and reliability of the
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