Bloomberg Law
Jan. 2, 2019, 1:33 PM

Thriving on Bitcoin’s Bust, Lenders Aid Both Fanatics and Shorts

Olga Kharif
Olga Kharif
Bloomberg News

As a growing number of cryptocurrency ventures struggle for funding, cut staff or shut down, all is well in one small corner of the industry: lending.

Creditors focusing on the crypto arena say they’re finding strong demand from borrowers who don’t want to sell their virtual coins at depressed prices, as well as from big investors eager to borrow coins for short selling. It’s putting lenders on both sides of Bitcoin’s bust: Helping believers pay their bills while awaiting a rebound, and also enabling bets by people who think the drop has further to go.

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