Institutional Crypto Lending Soars as Demand for Digital Asset Loans Increases 14%

Crypto lending platforms experienced a surge in institutional borrowing, with a 14% increase in digital asset loans processed in Q3 2024. Ledn, a major player, reported $437 million in loans to institutions, reflecting the broader trend of rising demand for digital asset-backed loans.

Ledn Reports $437 Million in Digital Asset Loans, Reflecting 14% Growth in Institutional Demand

This year, lending platforms are experiencing a substantial rise in the volume of loans processed. Ledn, a company that provides decentralized financing and savings, reported a $1.65 billion increase compared to last year.

The company processed over $437 million in digital asset loans to institutions in the third quarter of 2024, representing a 14% increase from the previous quarter. According to Cointelegraph, this expansion indicates a broader trend in which more institutions are investigating digital asset-backed loans due to the intense competition for access to dollar funding and the implementation of more stringent monetary policies.

“We saw a very healthy jump in institutional demand in July, which has remained steady since then,” said John Glover, chief investment officer at Ledn. “Institutional borrowing demand has also been fairly consistent with the overall ETF demand, where there was a similar jump in July.”

The company asserts that it has facilitated over $6.5 billion in loans across retail and institutional markets since its inception in 2018. The retail and institutional sectors' aggregate loan growth for the year amounted to $1.65 billion.

Data from DefiLlama indicate that as of October 16, the aggregate value of lending protocols was $31.9 billion.

This week's Crypto Biz also examines Ripple's RLUSD counterparties, Grayscale's list of potential crypto products, Tether's plan to lend to traders, and Thailand's SCB transition to stablecoins.

Tether Considers Lending to Commodity Traders After Reporting $5.2 Billion in Record Profits

As the stablecoin issuer seeks to allocate billions of dollars in profits, Tether Holdings is contemplating lending to commodities trading companies. According to reports, the stablecoin issuer has discussed lending opportunities with numerous commodity trading firms. Tether reported record-breaking profits of $5.2 billion in the first half of 2024 and a larger-than-ever stockpile of United States government bonds in a July 31 announcement. Sustainable energy, Bitcoin mining, data, artificial intelligence infrastructure, peer-to-peer telecommunications technology, neurotech, and education are among the industries in which the company has been reinvesting a portion of its proceeds.

Grayscale Adds 35 Altcoins, Including Dogecoin and Worldcoin, to List for Potential Investment Products

A list of 35 crypto altcoins, including Dogecoin, Worldcoin, Pyth, and Rune, has been added by crypto asset manager Grayscale to a database of assets "under consideration" for future investment products. Grayscale classified its prospective tokens into five primary categories in a blog post published on October 10: currencies, innovative contract platforms, financials, culture, and utilities. The firm selected a variety of networks, including alternative layer-1 blockchains Aptos (APT) and Sei (SEI), data availability network Celestia (TIA), and Ethereum scaling solution Mantle (MNT), with tokens for smart-contract platforms comprising the majority of the newly considered assets. Grayscale also identified the tokens of numerous other networks, such as Arbitrum (ARB), Cosmos (ATOM), Polygon (MATIC), Toncoin (TON), and Tron (TRX), as assets that have the potential to be converted into investment products.

Ripple Reveals Key Exchange Partners for Upcoming Ripple USD Stablecoin, Aiming for Enterprise Leadership

Ripple has disclosed the exchange counterparties for its forthcoming dollar-denominated stablecoin, Ripple USD (RLUSD). The blockchain infrastructure provider's collaboration with cryptocurrency exchanges and platforms, such as Uphold, Bitstamp, Bitso, MoonPay, Independent Reserve, CoinMENA, and Bullish, has facilitated the stablecoin's distribution. According to Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse, the new stablecoin is intended to establish itself as the "gold standard for enterprise-grade stablecoins."

SCB Partners with Lightnet to Launch 24/7 Stablecoin Remittance Services, Lowering Cross-Border Costs

Siam Commercial Bank (SCB), Thailand's earliest commercial bank, has recently disclosed that it will commence providing stablecoin cross-border payment and remittance services to its clients in partnership with fintech company Lightnet. The integration of stablecoin services will enable clients to send or accept cross-border transactions at any time, seven days a week, and will also decrease transaction costs. Stablecoins are an appealing alternative for individuals who receive remittances from currencies with more excellent value due to the reduced transaction fees.

Driven by robust institutional adoption of cryptocurrencies, Ethereum validators have increased by more than 30% in the past year, surpassing one million for the first time in June 2024.