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Tag: Lend

  • Coinbase Lets International Users Earn Interest on Crypto

    Coinbase has announced that it will let international users earn interest on their crypto holdings.

    The company had originally planned on introducing Lend, a feature that would have enabled US customers to lend their crypto and earn interest. After threats from the SEC, Coinbase abandoned the plans.

    Coinbase is now offering a similar service to international customers, a market outside the SEC’s jurisdiction.

    Today we’re introducing a new way for Coinbase’s global customers to put their crypto to work and earn yield. We are making DeFi more accessible, enabling eligible customers in more than 70 countries to access the attractive yields of DeFi from their Dai with no fees, lockups, or set-up hassle.

    Starting today, you’ll be able to earn DeFi yield on Dai, a stablecoin that is designed to be pegged to the US Dollar.

    There is no word on when, or if, DeFi Yield will come to US customers.

  • Coinbase Abandons Lend Feature Amid SEC Pressure

    Coinbase Abandons Lend Feature Amid SEC Pressure

    Coinbase has abandoned its plans for its Lend service after a high-profile scuffle with the SEC.

    Coinbase announced its plans to roll out Lend, a program that would allow users to lend cryptocurrency to others and earn interest on the loan. The SEC took issue with the company’s plans and threatened legal action if it continued. This led Coinbase to engage in what was widely considered an “ill-advised” public war with the SEC, with CEO Brian Armstrong calling the agency’s behavior “sketchy.”

    The company has now notified customers via a blog post that it is canceling its Lend plans as a result of the SEC’s actions.

    Our goal is to create great products for our customers and to advance our mission to increase economic freedom in the world. As we continue our work to seek regulatory clarity for the crypto industry as a whole, we’ve made the difficult decision not to launch the USDC APY program announced below. We have also discontinued the waitlist for this program as we turn our work to what comes next. We had hundreds of thousands of customers from across the country sign up and we want to thank you all for your interest. We will not stop looking for ways to bring innovative, trusted programs and products to our customers.

  • Coinbase Getting Into ‘Ill-Advised’ War With SEC

    Coinbase is calling out the SEC for what it believes is “sketchy” behavior, but TheStreet’s Jim Cramer is not a fan of its strategy.

    The issue involves Coinbase’s crypto lending program, called Lend. The service would allow individuals to lend their crypto assets and earn interest on the loans. Unfortunately, for Coinbase, the SEC seems to have an issue with Lend and has sent the company a Wells Notice.

    “Last Wednesday, after months of effort by Coinbase to engage productively, the SEC gave us what’s called a Wells notice about our planned Coinbase Lend program,” writes Paul Grewal, Chief Legal Officer, on the company’s blog. “A Wells notice is the official way a regulator tells a company that it intends to sue the company in court. As surprised as we were at the SEC’s threat to sue without ever telling us why, we want to be transparent with you about the course of events leading up to it.”

    CEO Brian Armstrong has gone even further, calling the SEC’s behavior “sketchy.”

    TheStreet’s Jim Cramer believes Armstrong and Coinbase are playing a dangerous game, especially since SEC chair Gary Gensler “taught crypto at MIT,” and has the full weight of a government agency backing him up on his already knowledgable position.

    “[Coinbase] is declaring war against a man who has unlimited firepower,” Cramer said.