Long-term Bitcoin (BTC) holders often face roadblocks to using their wealth to secure financing. Adam Reeds, CEO and co-founder of Ledn—a company that offers Bitcoin lending services—recently sat down with Cointelegraph to share how Bitcoin collateralized loans can accelerate the velocity of money and capital.
Reeds explained that many early adopters of Bitcoin don't want to sell their BTC to access liquidity and often lack robust options to secure loans from traditional financial institutions, which may or may not recognize Bitcoin holdings as collateral. This effectively keeps the collateral locked up and unproductive in the broader economy.
The solution is to put the Bitcoin collateral to work by borrowing against it, allowing Bitcoin holders to access fiat-denominated liquidity to finance a business, consumer spending, real estate, or even acquire more BTC, the Ledn CEO told Cointelegraph. Moreover, because Bitcoin loans are highly efficient, they allow the borrower to secure financing in a matter of days, as opposed to the weeks or months it usually takes through traditional institutions.
Sound collateral alleviates counterparty risk and depreciation risk
"It's pretty pristine collateral," the Ledn CEO stated—agreeing with Michael Saylor's assertion that Bitcoin is the most thermodynamically sound asset class—lacking the wear and tear that accounts for the physical depreciation of many asset types. The Ledn CEO also had this to say:
"I think the world is going to wake up and say lending against Bitcoin is a lower risk activity than lending against real estate or lending against equities because there's no GAAP risk."
Reeds also pointed out that other forms of counter-party risk, such as false media reports, fake whistleblower accounts, and bad press can sink the price of a business or an equity—a problem not inherent in Bitcoin.
Providing lending services to the developing world
The Ledn CEO also touched on the lack of banking infrastructure and adequate financial services in some parts of the world and how Bitcoin-collateralized loans could level the playing field for the unbanked and those living in high-inflationary environments.
A graphic depicting the problem with traditional money remittance services to developing countries. Source: Ledn
Examples of this include Argentina, which has a 276% annual inflation rate, according to Forbes, and, Nigeria, which has an unbanked population of 38 million residents.
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