Compound has introduced a new market designed exclusively for institutional participants, marking a shift toward permissioned decentralized finance services. This platform allows verified entities to borrow USDC by collateralizing major digital assets including Ethereum, wrapped staked Ethereum, Wrapped Bitcoin, and Coinbase Wrapped Bitcoin.
Access to this market is restricted to whitelisted institutions, ensuring a controlled environment for large-scale capital deployment. The protocol offers competitive terms for these professional users, notably featuring a maximum loan-to-value ratio of 87% for Ethereum collateral, which provides significant borrowing power compared to standard retail offerings.
Key facts
- The new market is accessible only to whitelisted institutional entities.
- Users can borrow USDC against ETH, wstETH, WBTC, and cbBTC collateral.
- Ethereum collateral supports a maximum loan-to-value ratio of 87%.
- The launch occurred on September 8, 2026.
Why it matters
This development highlights the growing segmentation within the decentralized finance sector, where protocols are creating separate infrastructure to meet the compliance and risk management needs of traditional financial players. By offering higher leverage limits and restricted access, Compound aims to attract institutional liquidity while maintaining the core mechanics of its lending protocol.