In a bid to learn more about the latest offerings within Crypto FinTech industry, CryptoTrends reached out to players operating within the ecosystem and finally interviewed Anthony Cerullo, Editor-in-Chief at YouHodler to learn more about how crypto loans work and where do they see the industry moving in the next few years.
What inspired you to choose the brand name ‘YouHodler’, does it have any relation to Hodl?
Well yes, YouHodler certainly does have a direct relationship with the crypto meme “HODL.” It is definitely not a coincidence. However, there is an additional fun fact about our origin story that can be traced back to a famous Swiss artist. As YouHodler grows in Switzerland, we’ve formed relationships with partners who have informed us that “Hodler” has a different meaning here. Many times, our new Swiss friends keep asking us if our name is a reference to Ferdinand Hodler, a famous Swiss painter from the 1800s.
This was definitely not our intention but it turns out, YouHodler has a lot in common with the artist Ferdinand Hodler. Ferdinand Hodler is most famous for developing a unique painting style called “parallelism.” This form puts an emphasis on rhythm and symmetry and Hodler was a firm believer that these two qualities formed the foundation of human society. In terms of our company, we believe YouHodler uses “parallelism” in finance since we operate on a parallel stream to traditional banking services.
While many platforms in the crypto industry try to distance themselves from the old world and even make outrageous claims to replace banks, YouHodler does not advertise ourselves in that manner. Instead, we prefer to say we work together with traditional institutions to help improve sectors of that industry and make financial technology more accessible and more affordable for everyone around the world.
What is the key differentiator you bring to the table? What is the USP of Youhodler in comparison to several other blockchain fintech products?
As we just mentioned, we think a key quality of ours is our ability to look at traditional finance as an ally and not the enemy. This, in turn, goes hand-in-hand with our philosophy of transparency, and reliability. At YouHodler, you won’t find any hidden fees, rollover, or suspicious fine print that traps our users. We take a community-driven approach to our platform meaning if they’re not satisfied, then ultimately, we fail as a company.
We have the highest interest in crypto saving accounts in the industry (12%), the highest loan to value ratio for crypto-backed lending products (90, and 100% uniquely designed features from our developers like Turbocharge and Multi HODL
Blockchain technology is a fantastic tool that can help improve the world of traditional finance and at YouHodler we bridge the gap between old and new to bring an affordable platform that helps users from all different backgrounds achieve financial freedom.
What is the ‘Multi-HODL’ feature? How can users benefit from it?
Multi HODL is loosely inspired by the Barbell Strategy. We saw many people using our savings accounts as a “passive HODLing” method and we wanted to make a tool that helped them keep using savings accounts, but also help them take a little risk and profit off the crypto market’s volatility. That’s where Multi HODL comes in.
Multi HODL is a tool powered by crypto-backed loans. Users simply take their funds from a wallet or YouHodler savings account and decide how much they want to multiply (up to x8.78). Then, YouHodler starts an automated process that lends the user funds to either buy (using the UP button) or sell (using the down button) more crypto.
For example, if a user has 1,000 USDT in his USDT Savings Account, he can take maybe 400 USDT to multiply via BTC on Multi HODL. The user is very confident that Bitcoin’s price will grow within the next week, so he chooses the “UP” direction and sets his multiplier x8.78. With this setting, the maximum amount he can earn is 4,713 additional USDT if BTC rises 150%. Of course, that is a rare scenario but YouHodler only charges a 1% origination fee for Multi HODL so if BTC goes up just 2%, the user profits.
It’s a very quick, and automatic way to multiply crypto. Furthermore, there are no hourly, daily, or weekly fees like you’d see on margin trading platforms offering similar solutions.
Where do you see the Crypto fintech industry in general and Youhodler moving in the next few years?
There is a lot of talk about “DeFi” right now and while I do think there are a few good DeFi platforms out there, the large majority are using this name incorrectly and are actually completely centralized. The industry and individual users need to be careful about how they label such platforms as it can be confusing and misleading.
As for FinTech, I see that it is a far stronger and innovative niche that is quickly evolving. I see the crypto fintech industry and YouHodler moving in the direction of crypto banks. Actually, we already see several good examples of fully licensed and highly functional crypto banks. Other countries in Europe are starting to make great progress in this niche as well and in the very near future, I see the merging of cryptocurrency and traditional finance becoming a reality. Together, these two industries can provide a full range of crypto-fiat services similar to those offered by traditional banks but highly improved by blockchain technology.
This will help us unlock new avenues to use crypto for payments, lending services, trading, investments, and more. The tokenization of assets is also a very real outcome of this. The only thing preventing us from accomplishing this now is regulators but that is changing in a positive direction. For example, we have new regulations like the Travel Rule that will help make crypto more transparent, and overall more reliable than ever. Regulation is not something to be afraid of. The end goal is to integrate with traditional finance and not destroy it. In my opinion, that is not an effective solution.
Anything else you would like to share or add on about Youhodler?
We are in a historic time in crypto history. Bitcoin is finally stable, major institutions are supporting crypto and solid projects, backed by truly useful technology are finally getting the attention they deserve (e.g. Chainlink). This is not the crypto market from 2017. What we’re seeing here is stable, healthy growth and it’s a really good sign for the future.
So we urge you to start researching blockchain and crypto if you haven’t done so already. Early adoption is still possible and YouHodler can help you activate your crypto even if you have limited funds. Don’t just sit around and wait for the crypto market to rise. Market movements in all directions present unique opportunities and YouHodler will help you with that. Come talk to our 24/7 support team and we’ll walk you through the whole process.
