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LAST UPDATED: July 28th, 2022

Blockfi is an online lending platform that allows customers to earn compound interest on their cryptocurrency savings, as well as use cryptocurrency for a loan. With investment backing from reputable names like Valar Ventures, Galaxy Digital, Fidelity, Akuna Capital, SoFi and Coinbase Ventures, BlockFi has deep pockets to draw on to back the company's financial endeavors. In a newer industry like cryptocurrency, BlockFi has a long history and is one of the most well-known in the space.

Continue reading for a full review of this cryptocurrency exchange company, or jump down to Blockfi reviews.

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The Good

  • Competitive Interest Rates
  • BlockFi Trading Account
  • Crypto-Backed Loans
  • BlockFi Bitcoin Credit Card
  • Loan Options
  • Financial Backing
  • Mobile App

Competitive Interest Rates

BlockFi offers competitively high interest rates on its interest account. Rates vary depending on cryptocurrency type:

  • Bitcoin — earn up to 5% APY
  • GUSD — earn 8.6% APY
  • Ether — earn up to 4.5% APY
  • USDC — earn 8.6% APY

The BlockFi Interest Account has no hidden fees or minimum balances, making it a good option for earning interest on your cryptocurrency assets. Your initial deposit and earned interest will compound from the previous month and then start to earn more interest.

BlockFi Trading Account

BlockFi also offers a trading product through which you can buy, sell, or exchange a variety of cryptocurrencies, on which you can immediately start earning interest the moment your trade is placed.

You can buy, sell, or exchange the following cryptocurrencies:

  • Bitcoin (BTC)
  • Ethereum (ETH)
  • Litecoin (LTC)
  • PAX Gold (PAXG)
  • USD Coin (USDC)
  • Tether (USDT)
  • Gemini Dollar (GUSD)
  • PAX

Trade execution takes place immediately and will be reflected in your BlockFi Interest Account.

Crypto-Backed Loans

BlockFi offers loans collateralized by your crypto assets — BlockFi will gave you cash and you will give it cryptocurrency as security for repayment. Applying for a loan takes less than 2 minutes and can be funded into your bank account or wallet in as few as 90 minutes.

Many crypto users wonder whether they can make major purchases with crypto assets. The answer is complicated since many financial institutions, such as mortgage providers, don't accept crypto as collateral. However, with BlockFi's crypto-backed loans you can secure cash which can be used for large purchases, such as a house or a car.

BlockFi Bitcoin Credit Card

If you would like to earn and save more Bitcoin, the BlockFi Rewards Visa® Signature Credit Card allows you to earn an unlimited 1.5 percent back in bitcoin on every purchase made, with no annual fees or foreign transaction fees.

Other rewards include:

  • Earn 2% back in Bitcoin on every purchase over $50,000 in annual spend
  • During your first 3 months of card ownership, earn 3.5% back in Bitcoin
  • Know if you're pre-approved without impacting your credit score

Loan Options 

The company offers loans against the cryptocurrency customers already own. The loan terms are 12 months with a monthly payment only required on the interest (which starts at 4.5 percent APY). This way customers get cash up front, but also don't have to sell cryptocurrency. However, the company's minimum loan amount is $2,000, whereas other competitors like Nexo, offer a starting point of $500.

Secure Financial Backing

While not backed by the FDIC, BlockFi's assets are held by Gemini Trust company and regulated by the New York Department of Financial Services, which has an excellent reputation. Customers can feel secure doing business with BlockFi.

Mobile App

Through the BlockFi app, available on both iOS and Android devices, you can manage your cypto portfolio on the go and access helpful financial tools.

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The Bad

  • Withdrawals and Fees
  • Security Breach
  • Not FDIC Insured

Withdrawals and Fees

There is a one day waiting period for withdrawing funds, which can be problematic if assets are needed right away. The company also only allows two withdrawals every month for free; after that fees are charged. It seems likely that active customers will have more than two, so this should be noted and compared to other companies’ offerings.

Security Breach

BlockFi experienced a data breach in May 2020. Although no funds were lost, customers’ personal data was compromised. The company was transparent about the incident and has since made changes to strengthen its cyber security, but customers should be careful to take note of any security issues should a repeat occur.

Not FDIC Insured 

As with digital currencies, customers’ money is not FDIC insured, due to the fact of it not being U.S. dollars. So if BlockFi were to be hacked or have a major incident, customers have no backup or way to recover funds.

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The Bottom Line

BlockFi is a trusted company for earning interest, borrowing cash, and trading crypto assets. 

Through the BlockFi Interest Account you can earn daily interest on your crypto assets with competitively high interest rates compared to other cryptocurrency exchange companies. And you can earn and save even more if you apply and qualify for the BlockFi Bitcoin credit card, allowing you to earn a certain back in Bitcoin on every purchase made.

All accounts and loans can be easily managed through the BlockFi mobile app.

View Best Cryptocurrency Exhange Companies

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9 Reviews

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5 grade

33%

4 grade

22%

3 grade

22%

2 grade

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1 grade

22%

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Gregory San Carlos, CA

Hello, BlockFi.com locked my account with $25,000 inside, around 80 days ago, and they are not willing to process a refund. They are asking for a court order just for them to process a refund. After seeing a bunch of info about the products BlockFi offers that seemed attractive at first glance, I decided to open an account. Within minutes the account was ready to take the money out from my bank. No photo identification required, by the way. I started depositing money, and seemed easy compared to other services of this kind. After a while, I thought it would be a good idea to secure some funds by processing two Crypto withdrawal requests. I've been waiting for two days (the minimum waiting time offered for a Crypto withdrawal), but instead of processing my requests they asked me for verification via ID/Passport, photos/video using my phone..(a regular request of any CEX), but what's strange, it's that they will ask for Verification after they allow you to deposit large amounts of money, and not before, as any other service does. I wonder what would happen with your money in a strange scenario where (for some reason) you can't successfully pass the Verification. But... that was Ok. I successfully processed the verification within minutes. Then, surprise..... Because I had two pending withdrawal requests for two different Crypto coins, even if one of them was for a very small amount being executed just for me to understand their withdrawal process, BlockFi asked me to get Verified once again. Not a different Verification process. Just the same one I had successfully executed minutes ago. No problem! I did it again "You're all set !". Within minutes, I got an email notifying that my BlockFi account was locked. No explanation other than asking to read their TOS, and the following notice..... "Should you be unable to retrieve funds through your bank, you must wait 60 days from receipt of this email before requesting a manual wire withdrawal to the source bank account. Please note that we may require identity verification to process the withdrawal. Note: Any requests made to BlockFi about your account funds will be ignored until we can process a return of funds which will only be eligible after 60 days. Do not reach out to BlockFi until after this date. " The 60 days have passed and even though I used every possible method to contact BlockFi, it doesn't seem like anyone's going to reply. (Several support tickets or by sending any kind of message using any possible form on their Help/Support pages, trying to call them using the phone number listed over their Help page, sending message via some of the previous support tickets that were used around two months ago to communicate with them..and more.. Let's not forget that a considerable amount of money is still with BlockFi, and my account is still blocked. If that can't be called an extremely frustrating situation, I'm curious to hear another :) . --------- UPDATE Finally I've been contacted, being informed that they will return my money...soon. This is definitely good news, but ... I still find myself in a "strange" situation. Let me explain: When BlockFi locked my account they said: "At this time, we are not able to return any funds to you directly. We’d recommend that you contact your bank and request that any ACH transfers you made to your BlockFi account be canceled and reversed. Should you be unable to retrieve funds through your bank, you must wait 60 days from receipt of this email before requesting a manual wire withdrawal to the source bank account. " I thought it would be faster to follow BlockFi's advice by asking the bank to proceed as per their instructions,but a nightmare was about to start. Shortly after asking the bank to return transfers made by me (no scam or hack involved), they decided that something is not right, ending by closing my bank accounts. PERMANENTLY. So BlockFi will not be able to send a Wire Transfer as it will be automatically returned. But when they blocked my account, part of the money was in Crypto balances. I wonder what are the terms used to close my positions. Crypto coins rates have changed in the past 70 days. Maybe they will process my original withdrawal requests via crypto? Or will they accept my request to send my money to another bank account in my name? Also I wonder how they could have sent a Wire Transfer to an account that does not accept wires (if they were sent to BlockFi from a NeoBank). Not the case here, but just wonder... --- UPDATE BlockFi's final word is: "Any funds on the account will remain locked until BlockFi receives a court order to refund the funds" $25,000 of my money are locked and they also refuse a refund to the source bank account

1 year ago

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Enzo Milan, MI

I been a costumer of BlockFi,for nearly 2 years. But few months ago few rumours and the drop in the interest they give on coins dropped so I moved most of my crypto to other platforms,although I still have an account with them.

1 year ago Edited October 24, 2022

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J B Sandy, UT

BlockFi is gaining traction for good reason. Very competitive in the crypto space, with a super user friendly trading platform for multiple coins.

2 years ago Edited January 24, 2022

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Jermmie Davis Dallas, TX

Denied my credit card application very picky of getting approved . And deserve has a history of discrimination toward people of color when it comes to credit and I wish my account to be deleted my credit score sits at 728 and I was turn down because of limited credit experience which is false ..

1 year ago

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Nursing for patients Tulsa, OK

I have used this here and there. It is easy to navigate and user friendly. Security seems good so far and no issues with it. I enjoy Blockfi.

2 years ago

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Amelia C Mobile, AL

I opened an account with BlockFi and I love it! I love that my crypto is so secure!

2 years ago

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Mike Dinh Baton Rouge, LA

I have been with BlockFi for at least a few months now I have a few cryptos parked in BlockFi for an extra dividend.

2 years ago

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Mike Joyce Renton, WA

BlockFi is a very user friendly program I use it weekly.

2 years ago

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Alison Roush Monmouth Junction, NJ

The BlockFi app is confusing and difficult to use.

2 years ago