With most banks paying under 2% on high-yield savings accounts, it’s no wonder people have been looking for an alternative place to park their cash. Over the past few years, crypto lending platforms have started to offer very high interest rates for holding cryptocurrency, as well as the ability to borrow against deposited crypto holdings.
CoinLoan is a crypto lending platform that offers up to 10% APY on deposited cryptocurrency, as well as crypto-backed loans with interest rates as low as 4.95% APR. Founded in 2017, CoinLoan originally offered crypto loans for Bitcoin deposits but now supports loans using one of over 20 cryptocurrencies as collateral.
CoinLoan Earn accounts pay interest on crypto deposits, ranging from 1.0% APY to over 10% APY, depending on the crypto being deposited. Interest is paid out monthly and is redeposited into the interest account, which compounds over time.
Overall, CoinLoan is a globally-available crypto lending platform that offers high interest rates on savings accounts, and reasonable personal loan terms for borrowing against crypto assets.
CoinLoan Fees
CoinLoan offers free crypto and fiat currency deposits (such as U.S. dollars), but does charge a spread fee for crypto purchases. There are also fees charged on crypto loans, which vary depending on the loan-to-value (LTV) of the loan.
Here’s a breakdown of what fees are charged on the CoinLoan platform:
| Type | Fees |
| ACH deposit | Free |
| Crypto deposit | Free |
| Credit/Debit card purchase | N/A |
| Wire transfer | Free (although banks may charge a fee) |
| Crypto trading | Spread fee about 1.0% |
| Crypto loan fees | 4.95% to 11.95% APR; 1.0% origination fee per loan |
Key Features of CoinLoan
CoinLoan offers crypto loans and interest accounts, but offers more features and perks than just borrowing and lending. Here are a few of the stand-out features on the CoinLoan platform:
Crypto-backed Loans
CoinLoan is first and foremost a crypto lending platform, offering loans against a user’s crypto holdings. These loans are backed by depositing supported crypto onto the platform as collateral, and borrowing a percentage of the value. These loans function similar to a portfolio loan against an investment account.
The loans are paid out in fiat currency or cryptocurrency, with interest rates varying based on the loan-to-value (LTV) ratio. Here’s how the loan rates compare:
| Interest Rate (APR) | Loan-to-Value (LTV) |
| 4.95% | 20% |
| 7.95% | 35% |
| 9.95% | 50% |
| 11.95% | 70% |
All crypto-backed loans come with a 1.0% origination fee, paid upfront. There is a 50% discount on the origination fee when the fee is paid for using the native CoinLoan Token (CLT). Loan payments are paid monthly in the form of whichever currency was borrowed, such as U.S. dollars.
Margin calls are a risk of crypto-backed loans, which can happen if the collateral for the loan drops in value too much.
For example, if someone deposits Bitcoin (BTC) and borrows 50% of its value, their loan is currently at 50% LTV. If the value of Bitcoin drops too far and the LTV goes above 70%, CoinLoan can issue a margin call. This gives users the option to deposit more BTC, or risk CoinLoan selling a portion of the collateral to get the LTV below the 70% threshold.
Loan applications are available on the website or mobile app and offer instant approval with an immediate deposit of funds.
Crypto Interest Accounts
CoinLoan offers crypto interest accounts that pay up to 10% interest (or more) for deposited crypto. Because these cryptocurrencies are lent out as part of its loan program, CoinLoan can pay high rates to depositors. In addition to crypto interest, CoinLoan offers interest payments on fiat currency deposits as well, such as U.S. dollars (USD), euros (EUR), and British pounds (GBP).
Each cryptocurrency offers a different interest rate, with stablecoins like Tether (USDT) paying out the highest APY. Here’s a comparison of the CoinLoan rates for each currency types:
| Currency | Interest Rate |
| TrueUSD (TUSD) | 10.30% |
| USD Coin (USDC) | 10.30% |
| Paxos Standard (PAX) | 10.30% |
| Tether (USDT) | 10.30% |
| Dai (DAI) | 10.30% |
| Binance USD (BUSD) | 10.30% |
| Euro (EUR) | 10.30% |
| Pound Sterling (GBP) | 10.30% |
| Ruble (RUB) | 8.30% |
| Bitcoin (BTC) | 5.20% |
| Bitcoin Cash (BCH) | 5.20% |
| Ethereum (ETH) | 5.20% |
| Litecoin (LTC) | 5.20% |
| Monero (XMR) | 5.20% |
| XRP (XRP) | 5.20% |
| Chainlink (LINK) | 5.20% |
| Stellar Lumens (XLM) | 5.20% |
| Wrapped BTC (WBTC) | 5.20% |
| Polkadot (DOT) | 5.20% |
| Cardano (ADA) | 5.20% |
| PAX Gold (PAXG) | 5.20% |
| Maker (MKR) | 1% |
| Uniswap (UNI) | 1% |
| Axie Infinity (AXS) | 1% |
| yearn.finance (YFI) | 1% |
| Compound (COMP) | 1% |
| Sushi (SUSHI) | 1% |
In addition to the interest rate paid, users can earn a bonus 2.0% APY when holding 2,500 (or more) CoinLoan Tokens (CLT) on the platform. This bonus pushes the top interest rates over 12%, which is a huge yield compared to traditional savings accounts.
Note: There are risks associated with crypto savings accounts, as the value of most crypto (even stablecoins) can fluctuate. Crypto interest accounts are considered a speculative investment and come with the risk of loss.
Crypto Exchange
CoinLoan offers a simple crypto exchange that allows users to buy and sell crypto directly on the platform. Instead of purchasing crypto elsewhere and then transferring those funds to CoinLoan to earn interest, CoinLoan offers no-fee purchases of supported cryptocurrencies.
The CoinLoan exchange currently supports 26 cryptocurrencies that can be traded with one another. It doesn’t charge any trading fees, but the exchange collects a spread, which amounts to about 1.0% of the trade price. Although this is a higher fee than some other crypto exchanges, it may still be cheaper than paying fees to transfer funds onto the platform from another exchange.
Note: The CoinLoan exchange does not support purchasing crypto with U.S. dollars, but does support euro, pound, and ruble fiat currencies. U.S. dollar deposits onto the platform are converted to U.S. Dollar Coin (USDC), which can be traded.
CoinLoan Token (CLT)
The native CoinLoan Token (CLT) offers certain benefits and features to holders. Staking CLT tokens on the CoinLoan platform offers increased rewards on interest accounts and lower fees for loans. Here are the benefits of holding CLT tokens:
- Earn More Interest. Users who hold at least 2,500 CLT that are staked on the CoinLoan platform earn an additional 2.0% interest on all crypto interest accounts. This makes the highest paying stablecoins offer over 12% APY.
- Fee Discounts. When paying the origination fee for a crypto loan, paying with CLT will reduce the fee amount by 50%. The standard fee is 1.0% of the total loan; when paying with CLT, the fee is only 0.50%.
Advantages of CoinLoan
CoinLoan offers a simple way to earn interest on crypto holdings, as well as borrow against crypto assets at fair interest rates. Here are a few advantages to using the CoinLoan platform:
- High Interest Rates on Deposits. Earning 10% APY on a savings account is pretty incredible, and CoinLoan offers this rate on both stablecoins and fiat currencies. Users can even earn an extra 2% by holding CLT on the platform.
- Built-In Crypto Exchange. Instead of needing to purchase crypto on another exchange and then transferring that crypto to CoinLoan, there is a built-in exchange for purchasing and trading crypto that offers reasonable fees, and instant deposits into interest-bearing accounts.
- Responsive Customer Service. CoinLoan offers live chat directly with the customer service team, and they typically respond within a few minutes. This helps users get questions answered quickly without needing to pick up a phone.
Disadvantages of CoinLoan
Although CoinLoan offers high interest rates on savings accounts, it doesn’t offer the biggest selection of crypto. Users may also find the fees for loans a bit higher than other lending programs. Here are a few things CoinLoan could improve:
- Limited Crypto Selection. CoinLoan only offers access to 26 cryptocurrencies, which is a small selection compared to standard crypto exchanges. For users who just want access to Bitcoin and other popular coins, this may be fine, but users who want a wider selection need to look elsewhere.
- Potentially High Loan Interest Rates. The interest rates on crypto-backed loans vary by how much LTV is borrowed, with higher rates for borrowing more against deposited collateral. Although the 4.95% rate is fairly low, the 1.0% origination fee upfront isn’t great. When loans are up to 70% LTV, the 11.95% loan interest rate is quite higher, especially compared to other crypto lending platforms.
How CoinLoan Stacks Up
CoinLoan is a solid crypto lending platform that offers high interest rates on savings accounts and access to crypto-backed loans for over 20 support cryptocurrencies. Users can also purchase crypto through the built-in exchange, or make trades for a reasonable fee.
Nexo is another popular crypto lending platform that offers loans as low as 0% APR and the ability to borrow against over 40 cryptocurrencies. Nexo also offers interest-bearing accounts that pay up to 16% on certain tokens (for non-U.S. residents only).
Although both Nexo and CoinLoan offer loans and interest accounts, as well as extra rewards with their own native tokens, CoinLoan is open to all U.S. residents, while Nexo interest accounts are not available in the United States. This difference makes CoinLoan more accessible to U.S. residents, although Nexo offers much lower rates on loans.
Here’s how CoinLoan and Celsius compare:
| CoinLoan | Nexo | |
| Savings Account Interest Rates | 1.0% to 12.30% | Up to 16% (available to non-U.S. users only) |
| Crypto Loan Interest Rates | 4.95% to 11.95% APR; 1.0% origination fee per loan | 0% to 13.9% APR; no origination fee |
| Crypto Selection | 26 | 40+ |
Final Word
CoinLoan is a solid crypto lending platform that offers great interest rates on savings accounts, as well as reasonable rates on crypto-backed loans. CoinLoan is also available in all 50 U.S. states, making it more accessible than some competitors.
CoinLoan does have a limited crypto selection, with only 26 cryptocurrencies to choose from currently. This makes it less favorable than larger exchanges that offer hundreds of coins to trade, but CoinLoan is more of a “buy and hold” platform.
That being said, there is an exchange built in, making it easy for new users to quickly buy crypto and start earning interest right away, or deposit the funds to borrow against.
Overall, CoinLoan is a solid crypto lending platform that is probably best for crypto interest accounts, as the loan rates can be on the higher side.