Imagine this: You own a meaningful amount of Bitcoin or Ethereum. You believe in its long-term upside, but you also have real-world cash needs: a down payment on property, an unexpected tax bill, business expansion, or simply wanting to retain exposure while unlocking liquidity.  

Historically, you’d have to sell. But what if you could tap your crypto’s value like you tap your traditional investments with a line of credit instead?

This is what crypto credit is all about and why it represents the next frontier in digital-asset finance.

From loans to credit: A shift in mindset

Loans are transactional. You borrow a fixed amount, repay on a fixed schedule, and exit the transaction once you’ve hit maturation.  

Credit lines are different: they stay open, renew automatically, let you draw when you want, repay when you want and give you flexibility.

At APX Lending, we structure our offering like a crypto line of credit (with some differences):

How APX Lending is like a crypto line of credit

• You post your crypto collateral (e.g., Bitcoin or Ethereum)
• We establish your borrowing capacity based on loan-to-value (LTV), asset type, and risk controls
• You draw when you need cash. You repay when you’re ready. You retain ownership of your crypto
• Your credit line remains open, giving you optionality for the next opportunity

Instead of “take a one-time loan,” you get “open a reusable line of credit powered by your crypto.”  

That shift opens up a world of new possibilities.

How APX Lending is not like a crypto line of credit

• Unlike a line of credit, which doesn’t typically charge a prepayment fee, we charge interest for the first three months in full if the loan is closed early. Look at it as an administrative fee for provisioning the loan.
• Lines of credit are revolving, which means they stay open until you specify otherwise. With APX Lending, you can extend your loan indefinitely, treating it like a line of credit. Just be sure to notify your support representative before your maturation date.

Why digital assets are becoming legitimate collateral

Once upon a time, only office buildings, bullion or highly rated bonds served as collateral for credit lines.  

Now, a few things have changed:

• Institutional investors are holding Bitcoin and Ethereum. Volatility is down compared to earlier years.
• Protocols and platforms are building safeguards like regulated custody, insurance, segregation of collateral.
• Borrowers are demanding liquidity without selling and losing upside, especially high-net-worth individuals and businesses.

In other words, crypto isn’t just a speculative asset anymore. It’s becoming a genuine collateral class. That means you can unlock value while staying invested.

Lessons from early crypto lending

The first wave of crypto lenders offered easy liquidity but lacked essential safeguards. Many failed because they rehypothecated collateral, mixed client assets, and operated without oversight. When markets dropped, clients paid the price.

Global regulators took note:

• Canada’s securities regulators introduced a framework for crypto trading platforms.
• The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) and the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision established capital and liquidity rules for crypto exposure.
• The Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) expanded AML/KYC standards for virtual-asset businesses.

These frameworks created a foundation for regulated crypto credit. Safer for borrowers, auditable for institutions, and transparent by design.

Unlock liquidity without selling your crypto

Read the guide

How a crypto line of credit works at APX

Here’s how the credit-line style product looks in practice:

1. You deposit your crypto collateral (e.g., 10 BTC) and it is custodied with BitGo in segregated, insured cold storage.
2. We approve a credit line based on your collateral and our risk model (for example, a 20%-60% starting LTV).
3. You draw fiat or stablecoin when needed, from business payroll to real-estate down payments.
4. Beyond making monthly minimum interest payments, you repay when convenient, and the line remains open for future use.
5. If your collateral appreciates, your borrowing capacity increases or you can withdraw less. If the market falls, you receive alerts and maintain a buffer.

This product gives you the flexibility of credit with the security of a regulated fintech lender.

What this means for retail and HNW borrowers

For retail investors:

• You avoid selling your crypto and realising capital gains today.
• You access cash on your terms, not when the market forces you to liquidate.
• You stay invested and maintain exposure to future crypto upside.

For HNW individuals, miners, family offices and business owners:

• Your crypto becomes productive collateral on your balance sheet.
• You gain liquidity but retain upside—critical for tax planning, multi-asset diversification, and institutional-style portfolio management.
• You work with a regulated, transparent partner, not the offshore “wild west”.

Key terms to understand

• LTV (Loan-to-Value): The ratio of your borrowed amount to the value of your collateral. A lower starting LTV gives you more margin for market movements. ‍
• Credit line vs loan: A line stays open; a loan is a one-time event. ‍
• Collateral growth / draw capacity: If your crypto increases in value, you may be able to draw more or maintain margin. ‍
• Liquidation threshold: At APX, once your loan reaches 90% of the collateral value, we liquidate the full position. At 80%, you’ll receive alerts and a soft margin call. ‍
• Custody an counter-party risk: Make sure the lender holds your assets in segregated, insured wallets and you retain legal ownership.

Why “crypto credit” is a game-changer

By framing your borrowing capacity as a credit line, you shift your mindset from “I’m cash-poor, I’m forced to sell” to “I hold optionality, I can borrow when it makes sense”. That difference matters for:

• Tax efficiency
• Portfolio design
• Business liquidity
• Intergenerational wealth planning

It also places APX Lending not just as a lender, but as a partner in your wealth strategy.

Getting started: your roadmap

1. Review your crypto holdings: Assess how much you’d be comfortable pledging as collateral.
2. Choose a conservative starting LTV (APX often recommends 30% – 40% for retail/HNW clients). In fact, our average origination LTV across our customer base sits at 47%.
3. Familiarise yourself with terms: draw options, repayment flexibility, alerts, custody.
4. Apply for the credit line, draw only when you need it, repay when you’re ready.
5. Monitor alerts, market movements, and maintain buffer capacity so you stay within safe limits.

Final word

Crypto credit is more than a niche product—it’s the next chapter of digital-asset finance. It gives you liquidity without surrendering upside, optionality instead of forced sales, and a trusted partner rather than an offshore risk.

At APX Lending, we’ve built a framework that blends credit-line flexibility with regulated custody, transparent thresholds, and institutional-grade stability. If you’re ready to think differently about how crypto supports your goals, we’re ready to walk alongside you.

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