The Good Tech Companies - I Unlocked Cash Without Selling Bitcoin: My OnLock Story

Episode Date: September 22, 2025

This story was originally published on HackerNoon at: https://hackernoon.com/i-unlocked-cash-without-selling-bitcoin-my-onlock-story. Discover how DeFi lending and EMCD Onlock differs from banks: no middlemen, just protocols, smart contracts, and instant liquidity for borrowers and depositors. Check more stories related to web3 at: https://hackernoon.com/c/web3. You can also check exclusive content about #crypto-lending, #defi-lending, #cryptocurrency-liquidity, #what-is-ltv, #collaterized-loans, #onlock, #liquidity-services, #good-company, and more. This story was written by: @MichaelJerlis. Learn more about this writer by checking @MichaelJerlis's about page, and for more stories, please visit hackernoon.com. Traditional lending depends on banks, paperwork, and trust in centralized institutions. To borrow money, you need a credit history, you fill in endless forms, and you wait for approval. Depositors rely on banks to manage risk, set interest rates, and decide who gets access to liquidity. The system is slow, opaque, and full of middlemen who take their cut. DeFi lending flips this model. Instead of banks, protocols set the rules. Instead of clerks, smart contracts execute them automatically. Instead of credit scores, collateral (usually in crypto) secures the loan. And instead of waiting days or weeks, users can borrow or deposit in minutes, directly from their wallets. Oracles feed real-time market prices into the contracts, ensuring that loans remain properly collateralized. For borrowers, this means instant liquidity without selling long-term crypto holdings. For depositors, it means earning yield on idle assets without relying on a bank’s decision. The trade-off? Risk is managed differently. If collateral value drops, liquidation happens automatically. Transparency is high, but responsibility shifts onto the user: you control your funds, but you also carry the risks. DeFi lending is still young and volatile, but it shows what finance looks like when code replaces clerks. It removes friction and opens access globally, yet it also demands awareness and caution. In short: fewer middlemen, more control, faster access — and new risks you need to understand before diving in.

This audio is presented by Hacker Noon, where anyone can learn anything about any technology. I unlocked cash without selling Bitcoin. My On Lock Story by Michael Jirlis. Greater than before launching a new product, we listen first. Our community shows us what greater than really matters, and that's how Unlock was born. Greater than greater than rather than a company pitch. I want to share a real story. Greater than Greater than Meet Sam.

Name changed. An EMCD user who tried the service firsthand. His greater than experience tells it better than I ever could. At some point, I needed extra funds, but selling Bitcoin was not an option. That would mean locking in a loss. I was looking for a way to keep my position while still getting access TOLI-Q-U-I-D-I-T-Y-Y-Y-Y-Y-Y. The solution was right there in my EMCD account. There is a service called O-N-L-O-C-K.

You use B-T-F-O-R-T-E-M-P-O-R-A-R-Y use. The whole process took about 15 minutes. Here's how it worked for them. Why liquidity services are trending. At the Zero XConnect Festival, there was a lot of discussion about platforms where crypto can be used as collateral. The idea is simple. You don't sell Bitcoin or ether.

You leave them as collateral and receive USDT. Your assets remain with you, while the stable coins can be used right away, withdrawn, used in services, or circulated. Unlike traditional financial solutions, there are. no paperwork, credit history checks, or long waiting periods. That's exactly why I wanted to test on lock-in practice with EMCD. Step 1. Choosing the terms. Everything is straightforward in the personal account. I could see my collateral in BTC, the available amount in USDT, and term options, 7, 14, 30, or 60 days. The system displayed a fixed fee, in my case, equal to 17% annually,

plus the daily calculation and the total amount for the selected term. After adding BTC as collateral and setting the parameters, A receive button appeared, and within 15 minutes the USDT was in my balance. Step 2. Understanding LTV and risk. One of the key parameters in unlock is LTV, loan to value. It shows what portion of your BTC value you can access in USDT. greater than, for example, if Bitcoin is worth $100,000, then at 50% LTV you can receive greater than 50,000 USDT the lower the LTV, the lower the risk of liquidation. If BTC falls in price,

LTV rises, and vice versa. That's why it's safer to keep some buffer. Liquidation happens if the LTV exceeds 95%. In that case, the system uses part of the collateral to close the position. The advantage with EMCD is that you get notifications and a five-day grace period. This gives time to add more collateral or return part of the funds in advance. In other words, you stay in control of the risk instead of just watching the price move. Step 3. Returning USDT and unlocking BTC. You can close the position at any time. It's enough to return the USDT plus the platform fee, and your BTC is released immediately.

Usually, this takes less than an hour since assets are stored in cold wallets. If there are no funds available, the system closes the position automatically at the market rate, but only after the term and the five-day grace period expire. Step 4. How to use USDT. Once liquidity access is arranged, USDT can be used right away. EMCD offers several options. Move funds into coinhold, EMCD's reward service, with reward levels of up to 14%. annually, depending on market conditions, or withdraw-through P2P. Greater than for me, it was convenient.

I kept my BTC while still gaining liquidity I could greater than put to use final thoughts. My Onlock experience. Unlock by EMCD is a practical way to access funds without selling core assets. It works as a collateral-based liquidity model but stands out with simple terms, transparent fees, and timely notifications. I received USDT in 15 minutes, kept my BTC and could manage my risks flexibly. For comparison, Arch, U-Hodeler, and compound offer similar services, but their trust pilot ratings are noticeably lower. Compound 3.2, U-Hodeler 3.8, Arch 4.8. Complaints often mention delays and hidden fees. Emccd holds a 4.9 rating, and my experience confirms this. Everything worked quickly, clearly, and without hidden conditions. Of course, the main

drawback remains volatility risk. If Bitcoin drops sharply, the position may be liquidated, but that's true for the entire sector, not just the MCD. In every other aspect, the tool proved genuinely convenient. It helps preserve your portfolio while giving you liquidity here and now. Like this story? Don't miss the next one. Smash that subscribe button and stay tuned D for more hands on crypto insights. Thank you for listening to this hackernoon story, read by artificial intelligence. Visit hackernoon.com to read, write, learn and publish.