Ledn, a leading digital lending platform, has officially secured a $50 million bitcoin-backed syndicated loan from Sygnum, a Swiss digital asset banking group with approximately $4.5 billion in client assets, according to a press release sent to Bitcoin Magazine.
Leiden and @Signum Official He just made history! 🎉
Sygnum Bank Issues First Bitcoin-Backed Syndicated Loan of $50 Million to Ledn
A giant leap for the industry and our customers! 🚀 pic.twitter.com/z8dVRD2ERt
— Leiden (@hodlwithLedn) August 20, 2024
The $50 million loan, which is being distributed among Sygnum’s institutional clients, will fuel Ledn’s expansion into retail lending, providing clients with enhanced access to capital using their Bitcoin holdings as collateral. The collateral will be held in a qualified custody, with the goal of ensuring the highest levels of security and compliance with regulatory standards.
“With the first Bitcoin-backed syndicated loan from a fully regulated bank, we at Sygnum are excited to support Ledn’s future growth and usher in a new market for institutional lenders and borrowers as the crypto ecosystem matures,” said Benedikt Quidel, Head of Credit and Lending at Sygnum.
This loan between Ledn and Sygnum reflects the Bitcoin industry’s continued maturity and shift toward offering fully regulated institutional financial services. The deal aims to build trust among traditional financial participants when it comes to Bitcoin-backed lending, potentially unlocking significant liquidity for the sector around the current $1.38 trillion syndicated loan market, according to the statement.
“We are proud to work with Sygnum, a fully regulated Swiss bank, to set a new standard for transparency, counterparty quality, strong risk management practices, and institutional-level lending standards,” said Adam Reads, CEO and co-founder of Ledn. “We believe this marks the beginning of a new era of transparency and professionalism in digital asset financial services, and is fully aligned with our long-standing commitment to client asset security and regulatory compliance.”