Coinbase launches UK on-chain USDC loans against BTC, ETH

Coinbase announced on Monday that it has launched on-chain USDC loans in the United Kingdom, enabling customers to borrow up to $5 million using bitcoin, ether and cbETH as collateral through Morpho on the Base Layer 2 network. The product uses overcollateralized lending: pledged crypto is moved on-chain into a Morpho smart contract and held there until the loan is repaid.

Customers can access the feature in the Coinbase app’s Borrow section, choose a collateral asset and request a USDC amount. Morpho disburses the loan to the customer’s Coinbase account within seconds. Funds received in USDC can be converted to British pounds or withdrawn from the platform.

Interest rates are variable and set automatically by Morpho based on market conditions. Rates can change every few seconds in line with block creation on Base. There is no fixed repayment schedule; borrowers may repay principal at any time. Loans are subject to liquidation if the outstanding balance plus accrued interest reaches a predefined threshold relative to the collateral’s market value. Borrowers receive liquidation alerts by email and text message.

Coinbase first rolled out on-chain, crypto-backed loans via Morpho in the United States in January 2025. The initial U.S. offering allowed borrowings up to $100,000 in USDC using bitcoin as collateral and excluded New York. The U.S. product has since added additional collateral types, including ether, XRP, DOGE, ADA and LTC. Total loan originations through the U.S. Morpho product reached more than $2.17 billion in USDC as of April 14, 2026.

The company described the U.K. launch as the next phase of geographic expansion and plans to offer the Morpho-powered loan service in more countries in the near future. The service routes collateral and loans on Base, with Morpho smart contracts managing custody and lending mechanics; on-chain transfers occur at origination and are released when loans are repaid.