Major cryptocurrency exchange and wallet provider Huobi has partnered with decentralized crypto lending platform Cred to enable users to earn interest on their holdings.

An announcement on April 1 revealed that Cred’s lending and borrowing services will be fully integrated into the Huobi Wallet, which supports over 1,000 crypto assets, including 8 stablecoins, for users across 200 countries and regions.

The two firms did not provide a comprehensive list of supported crypto assets, but noted that Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH) and stablecoins such as Universal Dollar (UPUSD) would be part of the new offering.

Monthly interest on pledged assets

As previously reported, California-based Cred is a licensed lender and a founding member of the Universal Protocol Alliance, a coalition of cryptocurrency and blockchain firms. The firm is backed by established industry names such as Binance Labs, Arrington XRP Capital, Blocktower and FBG Capital.

Commenting on the new partnership, Cred CEO Dan Schatt said that the firm was keen to offer its decentralized financial services to customers in these “times of financial instability.”

With the integration of Cred’s services, Huobi users will be able to lend their crypto holdings to receive monthly interest payments, with the possibility of rolling over their pledged assets for additional periods of time. There is no minimum requirement to participate in the program, and interest is payable in stablecoins or other crypto assets.

Holders with $150,000 in their wallets can also develop a custom program by consulting with Cred’s Private Client Associates.

An emerging sector

Huobi and Cred’s partnership has been cemented at a time when cryptocurrency lending and borrowing services are gaining increasing traction across the industry. 

In January, Celsius Network — the fastest-growing crypto-lender with $4.25 billion in coin loan origination — announced that it would be implementing compounding interest on all cryptocurrencies deposited in its wallet — a feature that had been requested by the Celsius community.

Other major players in the crypto lending space include BlockFi, Nexo, YouHolder and SALT Lending.