Ledn Now Accepts Your Shiny Tokenized Gold as Collateral — No, They Won't Melt It Down

Bitcoin lending platform Ledn has expanded its services to accept Tether Gold (XAUt) as loan collateral, allowing clients to borrow against the tokenized asset under the same model it uses for Bitcoin-backed loans. The company announced Thursday that customers can pledge XAUt instead of selling their holdings for cash, with loans issued and repaid in Tether's USDT or USAt stablecoins. Repayments can be made at any time without scheduled monthly payments. Under Ledn's existing structure, client collateral is held one-to-one and is not rehypothecated, lent out or used to generate yield. Tether launched USAt in the United States in January as a stablecoin designed to comply with the GENIUS Act.

The rollout is available across most jurisdictions where Ledn operates but is not currently available in Canada or the European Union. The addition reflects ongoing efforts to bring real-world assets into digital asset financial services, particularly as gold prices hover near record highs and Bitcoin-backed lending has become a standard feature of the crypto market.

Tether Gold's market capitalization peaked at around $2.89 billion, according to CoinMarketCap. The token has benefited from this year's rally in bullion prices, with gold climbing above $5,600 per troy ounce before pulling back to around $4,300 an ounce, though it remains up on the year.

The move comes as tokenized commodities take a larger share of the tokenization market. According to a recent Token Terminal report, tokenized financial assets have surpassed $43 billion, with commodities accounting for nearly 17%. Unlike commodity derivatives and futures, tokenized assets such as gold are backed by the underlying asset, giving holders direct ownership while enabling faster transfers and trading on blockchain networks.