Bitcoin lenders say institutions want crypto credit to look more like TradFi

At Consensus 2026 in Miami, executives from Two Prime, Ledn and Lygos Finance said institutional borrowers increasingly prioritize custody, transparency and standardized lending structures over complex DeFi products after the crypto credit collapses of 2022. What to know : Institutional bitcoin lenders are shifting away from complex DeFi structures toward more traditional finance-style practices emphasizing transparency, standardized contracts and clear risk controls. Panelists at Consensus 2026 said institutional borrowers increasingly scrutinize where bitcoin collateral is stored and whether lenders rehypothecate assets, reflecting lessons from the 2022 crypto lending collapses. Speakers argued that future growth in bitcoin-backed credit will depend less on decentralization and more on convincing institutions that crypto lending can offer predictable behavior, legal accountability and identifiable intermediaries similar to the existing financial system.