The peer-to-peer exchange has addressed an issue with Google’s CAPTCHA service that was blocking Chinese bitcoin traders from accessing its website.
Decentralized cryptocurrency exchange Hodl Hodl announced today that its lending service, Lend at Hodl Hodl, is now available to customers in the U.S.
“Lend at Hodl Hodl is a global, P2P, non-custodial, bitcoin-backed lending platform where anyone can lend or borrow stablecoins anonymously on a P2P basis,” per an announcement shared with Bitcoin Magazine.
The service allows users to create a lending contract and deposit bitcoin as collateral into its escrow directly from their wallet. The lender then transfers the loan amount outlined in the contract to the borrower and, once it is repaid, the lender releases bitcoin back to the borrower’s wallet.
As a decentralized exchange, Hodl Hodl acts more like a secure intermediary facilitating peer-to-peer (P2P) swaps between users. The Lend product is an extension of this non-custodial model.
“Unlike most existing lending platforms, Hodl Hodl does not store user’s funds, locking the collateral in the multisig escrow instead, with users holding the keys,” according to the announcement. “The platform has also eliminated the usage of fiat, to avoid any associated risks. The team believes that anonymity, no-custody and no-fiat makes it a true Bitcoin DeFi product.”
This is the first product that Hodl Hodl has extended to users in the U.S., according to the exchange.
“We have always wanted to serve U.S. customers, however some issues have tied our hands,” Max Kei, CEO of Hodl Hodl, said in the announcement. “Now, launching a Bitcoin DeFi product, we want to step beyond those issues. We see this project bringing value to the Bitcoiners all around the world, that’s why we are removing the borders. In the future, we aim to deliver more products to U.S. users.”