Bitcoin financial services platform Strike has launched a “volatility-proof” Bitcoin-backed loan that removes margin calls and forced liquidations, though it comes with a 14% interest rate and a strict on-time payment requirement.
CEO Jack Mallers announced the product on Tuesday, framing it as a response to feedback on Strike’s first loan product from May 2025.
That earlier offering triggered many liquidations during a stretch in which Bitcoin fell 54% from peak to trough.
No liquidations, at a price
Mallers described the appeal of the new product plainly:
“No margin calls. No price liquidations. No matter how far bitcoin falls, your bitcoin doesn’t move.”
The trade-offs are a higher interest rate, a shorter six-month term, and the obligation to keep payments current.
The maximum initial loan-to-value ratio is 45%, so a customer posting $100,000 in Bitcoin as collateral can borrow up to $45,000.
The APR sits 2.95 percentage points above Strike’s standard loans, which range from 7.75% to 11.25%, pushing the new product to between 10.7% and 14.2%.
Mallers explained the mechanics:
“The secret sauce is that we’re taking the extra charge that we’re giving you guys and we’re putting it on extra hedges in the market to protect all of us.”
Adoption gap in Bitcoin lending
A June report from lending platform Ledn found that while 88% of surveyed crypto investors would consider a crypto-backed loan, only 14% actually use one.
Ledn pointed to confidence in lending products and market volatility as key reasons for this “crypto collateral gap.”
Mallers noted Bitcoin has dropped 30% or more in 10 of the past 12 years, with four drawdowns of 50% or more since 2014.
Bitcoin investor Fred Krueger said the design shifts defaults away from temporary price swings:
“Instead of volatility causing automatic liquidations, defaults would be driven by borrowers’ inability to service debt rather than by temporary price swings.”
Miss a payment, face consequences
Clients who miss a payment have 10 days to pay or contact Strike before liquidation begins.
“That’s why we call it ‘volatility-proof,’ not ‘liquidation-proof,’” Mallers added.
The loans are available in most US states, with a $10,000 minimum for personal loans and as low as $5,000 for businesses in certain states.
Other firms offering Bitcoin-backed loans include Binance, Coinbase, Nexo and Xapo Bank.
