Borrowing against digital assets increased sharply in 2026 as both retail and wealthy investors responded to weakening crypto market conditions, according to new research from CryptoQuant based on CoinRabbit data. The report highlights a substantial rise in crypto-backed loan activity across major user groups, along with notable changes in collateral preferences.
Crypto-backed loan volumes jump in 2026
Retail borrowers averaged 53.5 loans per person in 2026, representing a 74% increase from 30.8 loans in 2025. High-net-worth users also ramped up borrowing, with average loans per borrower rising 18%, from 16.5 to 19.4.
This upward trend came as more crypto holders sought liquidity without selling their assets, using their portfolios as collateral. Lenders typically require borrowers to pledge more digital assets than the loan value, minimizing risk in the event of sharp market declines.
Repeat borrowing became increasingly common, with 65.1% of CoinRabbit users taking out multiple loans in 2026, up from 61.9% the previous year. The data also indicates retail borrowers waited longer between loans, averaging 21 days between transactions compared to 11 days previously.
Retail and high-net-worth investors sharply increased crypto-backed borrowing activity in 2026, with average loan frequency and repeat usage rising across the board.
The research did not single out a definitive cause for this growth but emphasized the clear spike in loan frequency and activity.
Shifting collateral choices: Zcash and XRP gain ground
Alongside greater loan use, borrowers diversified their collateral portfolios. Bitcoin‘s share among wealthy users dropped from 57.8% to 30.5%, while Zcash surged to 24.2% after not appearing in the prior year’s top collateral assets. CryptoQuant linked this lead to Zcash’s substantial price rally, climbing from around $50 to nearly $800 over the period.
Other assets such as Monero, Chainlink, and Cardano also gained traction as preferred collateral among high-net-worth individuals. In the retail segment, XRP remained popular despite its collateral share slipping from 41.7% to 35.2%. Bitcoin remained a significant choice, while coins like TRON, Stellar, BNB, Kaspa, and Velo saw higher use as well.
The collateral shift coincided with changing trading patterns: Tether and Bitcoin held the largest trading volumes, while USD Coin climbed into third place. Flare, Ether, and Ondo entered the top 10. Meanwhile, Solana, Stellar, and Shiba Inu dropped out of the main list by volume.
BlackRock, Bitwise lower crypto ETF conversion thresholds
On the institutional side, BlackRock moved to broaden access to its spot Bitcoin ETF, IBIT, by reducing the minimum in-kind Bitcoin conversion from $25 million to $1 million in July. Robbie Mitchnick, BlackRock’s head of digital assets, said the fund has now processed over $5 billion in Bitcoin conversions through this service, a significant increase from over $3 billion last October.
Mitchnick pointed out that “kidnappings, ransom demands, and custody failures” have contributed to strong interest in moving private Bitcoin holdings into a regulated fund structure through IBIT.
The weeklong in-kind conversion allows holders to transfer Bitcoin directly from private wallets into the ETF, preserving price exposure while mitigating some security risks. Bitwise also lowered its own minimum from $100 million to $3 million, enabling broader access for family offices and smaller institutions.
IBIT currently holds approximately 3.645% of all Bitcoin and reports net assets of $60.65 billion. The conversion service’s $5 billion total volume underscores the growing adoption of regulated ETF vehicles among high-net-worth investors.
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