Arch Lending Review 2026: Crypto and Equity Backed Loans

Arch Lending Overview

What Is Arch Lending?

Arch Lending is a US-based borrowing platform that allows you to use your crypto assets as collateral to take out fiat USD and USDC loans. Arch Lending puts a spin on the traditional crypto lending model by also allowing startup equity shares to serve as collateral for loans.

In the wake of high-profile lender collapses like Celsius, Genesis Global Capital, and Voyager, many crypto borrowers have become much more careful and discerning. Arch Lending is sensitive to this and appeals to this caution by making security and compliance a cornerstone of their business. The lender is fully operational and compliant in 44 U.S. states and they hold all customer assets in Anchorage Digital (a leading crypto custodian). Arch also emphasizes that don’t rehypothecate, or lend out, customer collateral.

If you’re looking for no-nonsense crypto loans, Arch Lending stands out as a prime choice. Let’s take a deeper look at Arch Lending’s innovative lending products.

Arch Lending Key Features

There are many lending options in the crypto market already, including popular centralized lenders and well-known DeFi protocols. While they provide a lot of similar benefits, Arch excels in several areas.

• Fiat Loans: While popular lending solutions like Aave allow you to borrow every type of crypto under the sun, Arch Lending keeps it simple; they provide loans in USDC and fiat USD, so you can receive your funds directly in your bank account.
• Regulatory-First Model: Arch Lending is fully regulated and compliant in 44 U.S. states. Their regulatory-first model encourages peace of mind in users who may have been burned in by shady CeFi crypto lenders in years' past
• Pre-IPO Equity-Backed Loans: Employees of select high-growth startups can put up their shares as collateral on Arch Lending. Borrow up to $5 million in non-taxable capital with an APR starting from 10%, with a 10-12% one-time equity fee.

Arch Lending Fees

In traditional lending, fees are a big part of the equation — providers charge application fees, origination fees, pre-payment fees, and fees for anything else you can think of. Crypto lending companies usually benefit from fewer fees. The only fees that you may be liable for is an origination fee of 1.5% and a liquidation fee of 2.5%, which is only charged if your LTV rises above 60% and your collateral has to be liquidated. Additionally, if you fail to repay your loan, you will face a 10% late fee.

Our Expert Review Of Arch Lending

Arch Lending is a unique take on the familiar concept of crypto-back loans.

In addition to allowing you to collateralize your loans with crypto, the service allows users with equity in select pre-IPO startup companies to use their shares as collateral — an innovative feature that unlocks liquidity for employees of large startups who cannot tap into their wealth.

Arch Lending’s Funding Process

Borrowing from Arch Lending is easy and it only takes a few minutes for your funds to show up in your crypto wallet or bank account. To borrow with Arch:

1. You do not need a credit score or history
2. You must be in an eligible jurisdiction
3. You must complete a short identity verification process
   

Here’s what the process looks like:

1. Decide on your loan amount and pick your collateral assets.
2. Sign your loan documents and complete the KYC process (which usually takes less than 5 minutes.)
3. Send your collateral to Anchorage Digital, Arch Lending’s qualified custodian.
4. Receive your funds in your crypto wallet or bank account

Crypto-Backed Loans

The main Arch Lending product is the crypto-backed loan.

You can use 3 crypto assets as loan collateral: Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana.

Loan funds are distributed either in USDC or fiat USD, the latter being a novelty that’s not available on many exchanges. Normally, borrowers have to take out a stablecoin like USDC or USDS and convert their funds to USD using an exchange like Kraken, but Arch Lending lets you skip the middleman and receive your funds directly in good ole US dollars.

According to Arch Lending, loan interest rates start at 9.5% APR, but they may provide variable rate loans on a case-by-case basis. Borrowers can take out loans at a loan-to-value (LTV) ratio of up to 60% — meaning that you can borrow the equivalent of 60% of your collateral in your loan. Loan terms are only up to a maximum of 12 months, however, which may deter borrowers with long time horizons.

Arch provides flexibility in the form of interest-only and principal + interest repayments. In interest-only repayment schedules, your monthly payment is only the accumulated interest of your loan, and the entire principal is due on month 12. Principal + interest repayment schedules, meanwhile, work much like traditional loans, requiring you to pay a portion of your principal + interest each month.

It’s important to note that Arch Lending is already available to US customers in 44 states. Each of these states also has a different minimum loan amount, and the list is every changing and getting longer, so they encourage you to contact them to determine if our loans are available in your state.

Loans are currently not available in California or Texas.

Startup Equity Backed Loans

Popularized by startup-friendly credit card Brex (where the Arch Lending CEO was an early employee), equity backed loans are coming thanks to Arch. The platform currently allows shareholders of certain high-growth startups to use their equity shares as collateral for taking out USD and USDC loans.

At the moment, Arch accepts equity collateral from 33 startups including Canva, Discord, Stripe, and several other well-known private companies. Borrowers get to keep their shares and they can borrow up to $5 million dollars at an APR of 9.5%. An important note here is that the maximum LTV of equity backed loans on Arch is 60%, and they require borrowers to go through a traditional credit check. However, equity backed loans have no recourse to the individual and no payments until the company goes public or is acquired.

Startup equity has become a respected asset class over the last decade. As companies are staying private longer and attaining higher and higher valuations, lenders like Arch help shareholders get access to liquidity for paying off debt, general expenses, or other investments — all while avoiding capital gains tax.

Institutional Loans

Arch Lending also has a dedicated loan product for institutional borrowers.

Institutional loans operate similarly to the company’s crypto loans, providing fiat USD and USDC in exchange for crypto collateral. According to the Arch team, institutional loans are handled on a case-by-case basis, so LTVs, loan terms, and loan amounts can be flexible. Institutions may even be able to get loans in cryptocurrencies like BTC and ETH rather than just USD and USDC.

Arch Lending touts a “white glove service” for its institutional loan borrowers, with a dedicated arch representative available at all times to answer questions.

Interface

The Arch Lending interface is well-organized and straightforward.

When you first begin the process of taking out a loan, you’re greeted by a page that asks you to fill in your loan information and indicate what assets you’d like to put up as collateral.

Once you have determined the details of your loan, the next step is to confirm your LTV. You have the option to set a specific amount of collateral, or loan amount, and view your loan health.

Once you have reviewed your collateral and LTV, next the next step is to select how you would like to receive your funds. You can get your loan transfer directly to as crypto wallet as USDC, or to your bank account as USD through a wire or ACH.

The final step in the process is to go through Arch Lending’s KYC identity verification process. You will have to provide identifying information like your phone number, name, address, and social security number, and you may also need to upload a copy of your driver’s license. In most cases, this step can be completed in minutes. Once your information has been verified, you can confirm your loan details, send your collateral, and you will receive your loan funds in just a few minutes.

Customer Service

This is one of Arch Lending's biggest selling points.

Arch Lending provides three contact methods: a) a chat widget on their website with a 20 min response goal, b) email support using team@archlending.com, and c) schedule a call using this link https://calendly.com/d/46c-vc5-5rc/15-min-meeting-with-arch

I tried out option a) and b) and found quick and helpful responses to my questions within just a few minutes through their email, and almost instantly through their website’s chat widget. I also noticed that I was speaking directly to Dhruv, the CEO of Arch Lending, so I felt like I was in good hands with regards to any sort of questions that I may have.

You can also book a call and get concierge level service. I initially thought this service is only available for institutional clients but seems like it's available to anyone, so please try it and let us know what you think!

Arch Lending Referral Program

Like many other projects, Arch Lending has a referral program in place to help onboard new users.

You can earn between $100 and $1,000 for each friend you refer to Arch Lending, depending on the loan size they take out. Rewards are available in USD or USDC stablecoins.

Here's the breakdown:

• $2,500 – $24,999 loan: $100 bonus
• $25,000 – $99,999 loan: $250 bonus
• $100,000 – $249,999 loan: $500 bonus
• $250,000+ loan: $1,000 bonus.

Who’s Arch Lending For?

• People who want to borrow in the US: Arch Lending was created with US borrowers in mind. Thanks to the lender’s regulatory compliance in 44 states, and their support for loans in fiat USD, Arch is a great option for anyone based in the US.
• People who want to use their startup equity as collateral: Shareholders and employees of select high-growth startups can use their shares as collateral to take out loans of up to $5 million through Arch Lending.Shareholders and employees of select high-growth startups can use their shares as collateral to take out loans of up to $5 million through Arch Lending.
• People who are security-conscious: All customer collateral is stored in institutional-grade custody through Anchorage Digital. Arch Lending also provides a $250 million insurance policy on all client funds, so you can deposit your collateral with peace of mind.

Who’s It Not For?

• People who want to borrow cryptocurrencies: Arch Lending provides loans in USDC and fiat USD. If you’re looking to borrow BTC, ETH, or any other cryptocurrencies, you won’t be able to do so through Arch Lending.
• People who want to use DeFi: Borrowing from a decentralized protocol like Aave or Compound is a fast and reliable process that’s preferred by some. Arch Lending is a centralized lender, so you’ll need to verify your identity and be ok with a limited range of loan terms, APRs, and LTVs.

Arch Lending Alternatives

There are a wide range of crypto lending platforms. The two main categories of lenders are DeFi lenders and CeFi lenders; Arch Lending is the latter, aka a centralized lender. CeFi alternatives include Nexo, so let’s take a look at how Arch Lending stacks up.

Arch Lending Vs. Nexo

Nexo is a well-known crypto exchange that also has an entire ecosystem including a lending product. Interest rates on Nexo start at 0%, but can go up to 17.9% last checked, which is meaningfully higher than the 9.5% Arch Lending offers. However, Nexo is an OG wealth management platform that supports over 80 cryptocurrencies and provides loans with an LTV of up to 90%. So it's worth taking a closer look at their rates for your specific circumstances before making a decision.

Is Arch Lending Safe To Use?

Due to the ever-changing nature of crypto, we cannot accurately say how safe and secure a product is now or will be in the future. The security steps Arch Lending have taken have brought this part of the industry forward quite significantly. We have examined a variety of factors to determine how safe we believe Arch Lending is, but please always use caution and do your own research. Read on to get a sense of our findings regarding the security of Arch Lending.

The safety of customer funds is a big focus for Arch Lending. Not only is this focus echoed across their website on almost every page, but they also rely on industry leader Anchorage Digital for securing customer funds. Anchorage is one of the leading institutional custody providers for crypto assets and they’ve built a reputation for reliability and excellence, meaning your collateral funds are well-protected with a trusted custodian.

Arch Lending also emphasizes that they do not “rehypothecate” customer assets, meaning that they don’t lend out your collateral to earn yield (as loan providers like the now-defunct BlockFi did). The lender is also fully compliant and regulated in 44 US states — which is impressive given how difficult it can be to obtain regulatory licenses as a financial institution in the US.

Arch Lending partners with law firm Goodwin Procter LLP for their legal and compliance side, and performs KYC (know-your-customer) checks on all clients.

Finally, Arch Lending retains an insurance policy which insures customer funds for up to $250 million against theft or loss of keys.

Arch Lending - Company & Founders

Arch Lending is the trading name for ChainFi, Inc, NMLS #2637200, which is not a bank.

Arch Lending was founded by Dhruv Patel (CEO & Co-Founder) and Himanshu Sahay (CTO & Co-Founder).

Patel worked at Brex, a financial services company that provides business credit cards to startup companies. Sahay has an extensive engineering background at large technology companies like Snapchat, Tinder, and Bird Rides.

Who Has Invested In Arch Lending?

Investors in Arch Lending include respected venture capital firms like Tribe Capital, Castle Island Ventures, Global Founders Capital, and others.

So far, the company has raised $2.8 million in a seed round.in a seed round.

Where Is Arch Lending Operational?

It’s important for lenders to be licensed given that they custody large sums in the form of customer collateral. Getting the thumbs up from US regulators is a very positive signal since US financial regulations are some of the most thorough and stringent in the world.

Arch Lending is operational in the U.S., with full compliance, to support loans to individuals in 44 U.S. states and territories: AL, AK, AZ, AR, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, HI, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, LA, ME, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, SC, SD, TN, UT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY, and PR.

They are working to support the remainder states too, so it's best to check directly with them.

They also support loans to businesses in most US states and in most countries globally. US States include AL, AK, AZ, AR, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, HI, ID, IN, IA, KY, LA, ME, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OK, OR, PA, SD, TN, UT, WA, WV, WI, WY, PR.

Final Thoughts On Arch Lending

For borrowers looking for USD or USDC, Arch Lending is a compliant and reliable partner.

With one of the longest loan terms in the industry, Arch Lending is a great choice. Arch’s focus on security and client peace of mind makes them a perfect choice for borrowers. The added option of taking out a loan against your startup equity only makes an already good deal that much sweeter.

Frequently Asked Questions