How btcnow Works
Buy Bitcoin with installment payments, powered by pooled liquidity. No liquidations, fixed rates, and tradeable positions.
No Liquidations
Price drops don't trigger forced sales
Fixed Payments
Rate locked at loan creation
Tradeable Positions
Sell your loan NFT on the marketplace
Buying Bitcoin
How to purchase BTC with installment payments in five steps.
Choose BTC Amount & Term
Select how much Bitcoin you want and your payment term (90 days to 10 years). The protocol calculates your fixed payment schedule and locks in your interest rate.
Pay Upfront Deposit
Pay approximately 2 months upfront: a first-payment buffer (covers ~30 days) and a last-payment escrow (held until completion). Both are immediately distributed to LPs as yield.
Protocol Escrows wBTC
The protocol uses pooled LP funds to purchase wBTC on your behalf. Your Bitcoin is held in escrow until your loan is fully paid.
Make Fixed Payments
Make regular payments over your chosen term. Your rate is locked at creation — it never changes regardless of market conditions. Deposit extra into your prepayment buffer for peace of mind.
Claim Your Bitcoin
Once fully paid, claim your wBTC. You can also pay off early at any time to receive your Bitcoin immediately.
Default Risk
If you stop making payments, you lose your escrowed wBTC and all payments made — including the upfront deposit. This sunk-cost design strongly incentivizes completing your loan.
NFT Exit
Every loan is represented as a tradeable NFT. Instead of defaulting, you can sell your position on the marketplace and recover value.
Earning Yield
How liquidity providers earn yield by funding Bitcoin purchases.
Deposit USDC
Choose your risk tier — Senior (lower risk, lower yield) or Junior (higher risk, higher yield). Deposit USDC into the tranche that matches your risk appetite.
Borrowers Generate Yield
As borrowers make installment payments, interest is collected by the protocol. Your deposited capital earns yield automatically through the accumulator system.
Yield Distributed by Risk Weight
Yield is split between tranches based on risk weights — Senior at 1x and Junior at 3–6x. Junior LPs earn proportionally more yield for taking on more risk.
Withdraw When Ready
Request a withdrawal, wait through the timelock period (7 days for Senior, 30 days for Junior), then process your withdrawal to receive USDC back.
On Default
When a borrower defaults, Junior absorbs the loss first. LPs who absorbed the loss receive the seized wBTC directly — they can hold it or sell, their choice. If BTC price rose since the loan was created, the wBTC can be worth more than the loss.
Senior vs. Junior Tranches
Two risk tiers for different LP profiles. Choose your trade-off.
Lower Risk, Steady Yield
- Protected from losses until Junior tranche is fully depleted
- 7-day withdrawal timelock
- Earn base yield — ideal for conservative capital
Higher Risk, Amplified Yield
- 3–6x the yield rate of Senior tranche
- 30-day withdrawal timelock
- First to absorb losses — but receives seized wBTC from defaults
Loss Absorption Waterfall
At the target 20% Junior ratio, Junior absorbs 100% of typical losses. Senior only takes loss if Junior is completely wiped out.
How Funds Flow
Visualize how capital moves through the protocol — deposits, loans, and defaults.
Deposit Flow
Loan Flow
Default Flow
Payment Lifecycle
How payments flow through the protocol — from creation to completion, default, and NFT trading.
Payment Schedule
Default Case
NFT Position
Interest Rate Model
Utilization-based kink model that balances supply and demand for capital.
Borrow Rate vs. Utilization
Kink model: gradual increase to 80% utilization, then steep climb to discourage over-borrowing
Volatility Premium
Scales with BTC volatility and loan term length. Higher vol or longer terms mean a larger premium added to the base rate.
Term Premium
Ranges from 0% for 30-day loans up to 6% for 5-year terms. Longer commitments carry additional risk, reflected in the rate.
Weighted Average
Your locked rate is the average of pre and post-loan utilization rates. Larger loans pay more, reflecting their impact on liquidity.
Safety Mechanisms
Built-in protections that keep the protocol healthy.
Tiered Loan Limits
No Liquidation Risk
Unlike collateralized lending protocols, BTC price drops never trigger forced liquidations. Your payment schedule stays fixed regardless of market conditions.
Adaptive Base Rate
The base rate adjusts every 7 days based on time-weighted average utilization, ensuring rates stay competitive and responsive to market conditions.
Position Marketplace
Every loan is an NFT. If you can't continue payments, sell your position on the marketplace instead of defaulting and losing everything.
Key Parameters
Current protocol configuration at a glance.
Senior Weight
1x
Base yield multiplier
Junior Weight
3–6x
Dynamic based on ratio
Protocol Fee
1%
Taken from yield
Base Rate
5%
At 0% utilization
Kink Utilization
80%
Steep rate increase after
Senior Timelock
7 days
Withdrawal waiting period
Junior Timelock
30 days
Withdrawal waiting period
Target Junior Ratio
20%
Ideal junior share of TVL
Ready to get started?
Buy Bitcoin with installments or provide liquidity to earn yield.