If you’re already buying and holding cryptocurrencies, lending crypto is a great way to earn passively from coins and tokens that are just lying around in your wallets. Whether it’s through crypto peer-to-peer lending or lending through a platform or site, DeFi crypto lending lets you turn a profit from idle crypto assets.
In this guide, we’ll help you find the best crypto lending platform for you as we cover and review crypto lending rates, features of crypto lending platforms, and some other crypto lending programs.
In This Guide
Explore and find the right crypto lending platform for you. Note that some of the best crypto lending platforms not only shine with high-interest rates but with several quality of life features as well.
Finding the right crypto lending platform for you will require looking into several things. From the cryptocurrencies available for lending to the interest rates offered, your preferences will definitely affect which crypto lending platforms to choose from.
With all of this considered, let’s take a look at how lending crypto works for some of the crypto lending platforms we reviewed.
If you’re asking for our recommendation, our overall best crypto lending platform is AQRU. Aside from being very easy to use, AQRU offers the most popular stablecoins and cryptocurrencies for lending. Earn an annual percentage yield (APY) of 12% for lending your Tether (USDT), USD Coin (USDC), or Dai (DAI), and 7% APY for Bitcoin and Ether.
What makes these lending rates incredible is that there are no fees for crypto and bank deposits, no fees for buying crypto, and no lock-in period. This means that you can withdraw any of your cryptocurrencies from AQRU within just 24 hours. AQRU is transparent in that there are no hidden fees and all users really need to factor in is the $20 withdrawal fee that is paid in the currency being withdrawn.
In terms of regulations and security, AQRU is owned by Accru Finance Ltd, a private limited company registered in England and Wales. Their crypto wallet system is secured by Fireblocks, a leading wallet infrastructure provider, to keep your crypto lending accounts safe. In the event that assets are stolen, a $30 million policy is in place to cover the losses from theft.
Most people will find AQRU as the right platform for them because of their high APY rates combined with the option to pull the cryptocurrency that you are currently lending to earn. Lending crypto on the platform for long periods of time will provide the maximum benefit.
The minimum deposit to lend crypto on AQRU is $100 and there is currently no minimum for withdrawals as long as users can cover the $20 withdrawal fee.
Feature Amount Maximum Interest Rate for Stablecoins 12% APY for USDT, USDC, DAI Maximum Interest Rate for Non-stablecoins 7% APY for BTC and ETH
Pros: No buying fees for crypto High rates for any balance size Zero lock-in periods Fast transaction speeds Joining bonus of 10 USDT Mobile app available No bank transfer and crypto transfer fees Cons: KYC and ID verification required Only 5 coins available for lending crypto
KYC and ID verification required Only 5 coins available for lending crypto
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Capital at risk. You must be satisfied that this crypto offering is suitable for you in light of your financial circumstances and attitude towards risk. The price or value of cryptocurrencies can rapidly increase or decrease at any time.
Crypto.com is one of the best and safest crypto lending platforms with high yields. Their crypto lending product, Crypto Earn, provides up to 14.5% APY on cryptocurrencies and 14% APY for stablecoins provided enough Crypto.com Coins are staked.
The platform is also known as being one of the best crypto exchange platforms available, owing to its quick growth and marketing strategies. With over 10 million users worldwide, Crypto.com offers a variety of crypto products and marketplaces for those in the crypto sphere.
If you’re already on or looking to join the Crypto.com ecosystem, then Crypto Earn might be the best crypto lending platform for you. They offer crypto lending for more than 50 cryptocurrencies and users who own a lot of CRO can stake them to increase their yield. There are also three holding term options: flexible holding term, 1-month fixed term, and 3-month fixed term.
Crypto.com’s crypto lending rates will vary depending on how much CRO you’ll stake, the holding terms, and which cryptocurrencies you’ll lend. For example, the maximum yield you can achieve with Crypto.com is if you plan on lending Polkadot (DOT), stake $40,000 worth of CRO, and use a 3-month fixed holding term.
Lastly, the Crypto Earn product has a threshold for earning. For example, to earn fixed and flexible holdings for USDT, you need to lend 250 USDT or more to meet the threshold.
Feature Amount Maximum Interest Rate for Stablecoins 14% APY for 3-month fixed USDT, USDC, and more Maximum Interest Rate for Non-stablecoins 14.5% APY for 3-month fixed DOT
Pros: Supports over 40 cryptocurrencies for earning 14% annual returns on staking stablecoin on the platform Spend with the Crypto.com Visa Card and get up to 8% back NFT marketplace available Multiple DeFi integrations on the site Mobile app available Fees that are competitive, transparent, and offer discounts Cons: Lower returns per annum without staking CRO Difficult to navigate trading fee discounts
Lower returns per annum without staking CRO Difficult to navigate trading fee discounts
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A great platform to start lending crypto and Bitcoin is BlockFi, a user-friendly lending platform with its own crypto wallet and crypto exchange. They specialize in stablecoin lending, offering up to 8% APY on popular stablecoins like USDT, DAI, and BUSD.
Due to the latest regulatory restrictions, lending crypto is unavailable for US-based BlockFi accounts. This means that access to BlockFi Interest Account (BIA), the platform’s crypto savings account, is restricted.
If you’re still keen on using BlockFi, you can still create an account and purchase crypto from their exchange platform. The cryptocurrencies stored in your BlockFi wallet can then be transferred to another crypto lending platform for you to earn yield. Currently, BlockFi is actively engaging with US regulators at both the federal and state level to allow for the use of their crypto lending platform.
For now, BlockFi’s crypto lending rates are not only decently high at 8% APY for stablecoins, but their tier limits are high as well. In particular, users can expect an 8% APY for the first 20,000 USDT they lend. From there, the remaining stablecoins until 10,000,000 USDT will earn a 7% APY.
Feature Amount Maximum Interest Rate for Stablecoins 8% APY for USDT, USDC, BUSD, DAI, PAX Maximum Interest Rate for Non-stablecoins 11% APY for MATIC
Pros: Allows for monthly compounding on earning positions Over 14 stablecoins and other cryptos are available for earning Higher upper limits for crypto interest tiers Rewards credit card and investment products available Mobile app available Cons: No 24/7 live support Available only for non-US clients
No 24/7 live support Available only for non-US clients
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Digital currency is not legal tender, is not backed by the government, and crypto accounts held with BlockFi are not subject to FDIC or SIPC protections. Digital currency values are not static and fluctuate due to market changes.
Investors who are looking to bag the highest interest rates for lending crypto should definitely consider Nexo. Crypto lending rates on the platform can go as high as 36% APR for Axie Infinity Shards (AXS) which is on promotion. For stablecoins, their highest yield is 17% APR for TerraUSD (UST). For these rates, earnings come in the form of NEXO tokens.
Nexo also offers both flexible and locked term holdings when lending crypto. Flexible holdings don’t offer high crypto lending rates compared to locked term holdings, but they do let you withdraw freely at any moment. Nexo says that 72% of their users are planning to hold their crypto assets for three or more years.
Similar to BlockFi, the Nexo Earn product is currently unavailable for US-based clients. However, US users can still buy, exchange, and store cryptocurrencies through the Nexo platform and Nexo Wallet App. Those looking to use Nexo can still lend their cryptocurrencies by connecting their Nexo Wallet to another crypto lending platform.
Otherwise, the Nexo platform offers great value in their compounding daily payouts, flexible earnings, zero fees, and top-tier insurance. They definitely have the potential to be one of the leading crypto lending platforms if restrictions ease in the US. Already $200 million have been paid out as interest across over 3.5 million users. 32 lending crypto are available on this up-and-coming crypto lending platform.
Feature Amount Maximum Interest Rate for Stablecoins 17% APR for UST Maximum Interest Rate for Non-stablecoins 36% APR for AXS
Pros: Allows for daily compounding Up to $375M insurance in the event of third-party hacks, theft, or loss of private keys No hidden fees or commissions for adding, withdrawing, or holding funds Offers both fixed and flexible holdings Mobile app available Cons: Requires NEXO staking for higher yields Nexo Earn product currently unavailable in the US
Requires NEXO staking for higher yields Nexo Earn product currently unavailable in the US
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Cryptocurrencies are highly volatile and speculative assets. Your capital is at risk.
If you aren’t already familiar with crypto lending or even crypto trading in general, YouHodler is a great beginner crypto lending platform to help you get started. Aside from offering the most popular coins, YouHodler has lending crypto for over 50 cryptocurrencies.
The highest crypto lending rates on YouHodler are for USDT at 12.3% APR. For other cryptocurrencies such as PancakeSwap (CAKE) and UniSwap (UNI), crypto lenders can expect a 7% APR.
Just like the last two platforms, however, YouHodler’s crypto earning product is unavailable for US jurisdictions. For this case, you can still use the crypto exchange on the YouHodler platform and hold cryptocurrencies on YouHodler’s multi-coin wallet. Transfer the cryptocurrencies from the YouHodler wallet to another crypto lending platform to earn interest from lending crypto
Crypto interest earnings from a YouHodler account are deposited weekly, so compounding can be calculated on a weekly timeframe. Lendings are insured with $150 million pooled crime insurance by Ledger Vault. Furthermore, YouHodler clients can use savings funds as collateral for their lending products.
Feature Amount Maximum Interest Rate for Stablecoins 12.3% APR for USDT Maximum Interest Rate for Non-stablecoins 7% APR for UNI, SUSHI, TRX, NEAR, CAKE
Pros: Beginner friendly platform Several popular coins available for yield User-friendly mobile app available Easy to deposit and access profile Multi coin crypto wallet available Cons: Limited number of yieldable crypto Not available in the US
Beginner friendly platform Several popular coins available for yield User-friendly mobile app available Easy to deposit and access profile Multi coin crypto wallet available
Limited number of yieldable crypto Not available in the US
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Your money is at risk.
If you’re looking to use crypto as a savings account, then comparing different platforms to find the right one for you is necessary. Below is a comparison table of the crypto lending platforms we’ve reviewed.
Platform Coins and Tokens for Lending Maximum Interest Rate AQRU USDT, DAI, USDC, ETH, BTC 12.0% APY for USDT, USDC, and DAI Crypto.com CRO, USDT, USDC, TUSD, DAI, BUSD, HUSD, BTC, EURS, ETH, LINK, UNI, COMP, MKR, SUSHI, YFI, SNX, OMG, PAXG, DOGE, LTC, XRP, XLM, ZRX, BNT, BNB, ADA, DASH, TRX, EOS, BCH, AAVE, DOT, HT, XTZ, BAT, USDP, REP, AVAX, BTT, 1INCH, FTT, NEAR, ZIL, FIL, ATOM, SRM, FTM, LUNA 14.5% APY for 3-month fixed USDT, USDC, and more BlockFi BTC, LTC, ETH, LINK, USDC, GUSD, PAX, PAXG, UDST, BUSD, DAI, UNI, BAT 11% APY for MATIC Nexo USDT, USDC, DAI, USDP, TUSD, UST, USDX, EURX, GBPX, BTC, ETH, NEXO, AXS, FTM, MATIC, DOT, LUNA, AVAX, KSM, ATOM, BNB, ADA, SOL, XRP, LTC, LINK, BCH, XLM, TRX, EOS, PAXG, DOGE 36% APR for AXS YouHodler USDT, USDC, TUSD, DAI, BUSD, HUSD, BTC, EURS, ETH, LINK, UNI, COMP, MKR, SUSHI, YFI, SNX, OMG, PAXG, DOGE, LTC, XRP, XLM, ZRX, BNT, BNB, ADA, DASH, TRX, EOS, BCH, AAVE, DOT, HT, XTZ, BAT, USDP, REP, AVAX, BTT, 1INCH, FTT, NEAR, ZIL, EGLD, CAKE, FIL, ATOM, SRM, FTM, LUNA 12.3% APY for USDT
Despite being a new product, there are several ways of lending crypto. From peer-to-peer crypto lending to using a crypto lending platform, we’ll discuss each of these crypto lending types in this section.
Crypto lending was popularized in decentralized exchanges (DEXs) that gave holders full control of their crypto assets. However, centralized exchanges like all the crypto lending platforms mentioned offering a better user experience for lending crypto. How they work is that your held crypto is put in a custodial account and is lent out on your behalf. The crypto lending platform then takes a cut of the interest that the borrower pays.
The advantages of lending crypto from a site are more beginner-friendly interfaces, more payment methods, and faster transactions.
Only cryptocurrencies under the Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus model can be used for staking. Cryptocurrencies such as MATIC and AVAX are lent out in their perspective blockchains to facilitate the validation of new transactions.
So what’s the argument on crypto staking vs lending? Crypto staking requires you to lock your cryptocurrency for several days to weeks at a time. Crypto lending on the other hand can be locked or flexible wherein you can withdraw at any time.
Answering the crypto staking vs lending debate, both methods are great ways to earn crypto and have their pros and cons. Generally, staking is best if you want to earn more for a specific currency and are alright with holding it for a longer period of time. This makes sense if you’re bullish on the coin.
Crypto peer to peer lending is directly loaning your crypto assets to another individual. Usually, there are platforms that help facilitate these crypto peer-to-peer lending transactions. One advantage of crypto peer to peer lending is better lending rates. Without middle-man taking commissions like lending crypto from a site, lenders get the full interest rate while borrowers enjoy lower rates.
Many of these crypto peer to peer lending platforms are decentralized and several can be found to connect borrowers and lenders. Overall, you’re still risking your crypto assets to individuals without much of a third-party to intervene.
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There are many different factors at play that can affect Bitcoin lending rates as well as other crypto lending rates. Demand for certain coins, market conditions, and a plethora of other factors affect these rates as a whole. You could say it’s as complicated as the interest rates issued by governments and central banks.
One thing to note is that crypto lending rates can vary widely between crypto lending platforms and the best crypto lending platform for you might be different for others. Some crypto lending platforms offer rewards for lending crypto and staking their native coins while others offer reliably high crypto lending rates.
Below are some steps to help you get started with an AQRU Crypto lending account which should take just minutes to open.
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First, head to the AQRU website and click on the Sign-Up button. You’ll fill in your email, password, optional referral code, and select your preferred currency. Afterward, you should complete your email verification which will allow you to access your AQRU account.
Before you can deposit funds, you’ll first need to verify your account. This process will simply ask for citizenship details, your address, and also ask you to upload valid IDs. Once your account has been verified, you will be able to deposit funds via bank transfer, crypto from other platforms, or a bank card.
Finally, click the ‘Buy’ button on your account dashboard and choose which crypto you want to buy to lend. Once you’ve selected how much you want to earn in your savings account, you can confirm the process to begin earning interest from lending crypto! Withdraw any time while your account accrues daily.
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As we mentioned earlier, crypto lending platforms have little to no regulations. More regulatory frameworks are being discussed as many wonders how the SEC threatens to over crypto lending.
It’s necessary to understand this, especially for those who are looking to deposit large amounts of cryptocurrencies to lend on these platforms. Read carefully on the risk disclaimers found on these sites.
In order to minimize risk, users should sign up and deposit at two to three different decentralized finance lending platforms at a time. Cryptocurrencies remain to be volatile assets, so guaranteed earnings from lending crypto can still net losses if prices fall on certain cryptocurrencies.
In the end, we’ve gone through some crypto lending rates and the different crypto lending platform features to help you find the best crypto lending platform for you. While cryptocurrencies remain speculative and volatile assets, new ways to earn passively from crypto assets like lending crypto can offer actual returns when implemented properly.
If you’re looking to open a crypto lending account today, we recommend the AQRU platform. Start earning 12% APY on stablecoins and 7% APY on BTC and ETH with no hidden fees – all through AQRU’s handy mobile app!
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What is crypto lending? Just like lending real life money or fiat currencies, crypto lending lets you give your held cryptocurrencies to a platform in exchange for interest which is usually calculated in annual percentage return (APR) or annual percentage yield (APY). How does crypto lending work? Crypto lending works by submitting your cryptocurrencies to be lent to a platform or exchange so other users can borrow it. You’ll be given interest for risking and having your cryptocurrency used by another party. Is crypto lending safe? If you are using established and reputable platforms, crypto lending can be a safe and popular investment method despite some risks. However, many crypto lending platforms act like unregulated banks since the product is very new. Make sure to do the proper research for the platform you plan on using for lending crypto. Which is the best platform for lending crypto? Our overall recommendation for the best crypto lending platform is AQRU. Aside from being very easy to use, AQRU offers the most popular stablecoins and cryptocurrencies for lending. Is lending Bitcoin profitable? Bitcoin is a volatile asset, meaning its price can change drastically. Because of this, it’s hard to predict how much profit Bitcoin will really give at a given time since your interest is paid in bitcoin or other crypto tokens.
Just like lending real life money or fiat currencies, crypto lending lets you give your held cryptocurrencies to a platform in exchange for interest which is usually calculated in annual percentage return (APR) or annual percentage yield (APY).
Crypto lending works by submitting your cryptocurrencies to be lent to a platform or exchange so other users can borrow it. You’ll be given interest for risking and having your cryptocurrency used by another party.
If you are using established and reputable platforms, crypto lending can be a safe and popular investment method despite some risks. However, many crypto lending platforms act like unregulated banks since the product is very new. Make sure to do the proper research for the platform you plan on using for lending crypto.
Our overall recommendation for the best crypto lending platform is AQRU. Aside from being very easy to use, AQRU offers the most popular stablecoins and cryptocurrencies for lending.
Bitcoin is a volatile asset, meaning its price can change drastically. Because of this, it’s hard to predict how much profit Bitcoin will really give at a given time since your interest is paid in bitcoin or other crypto tokens.
Jose Rafael Aquino is a Filipino writer and entrepreneur that specializes in finance, technology, cryptocurrency, and sports. Versed in the startup tech space, he has written for websites such as The GUIDON, StockApps, and BuyShares.
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