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Confidential — Bank Partner Materials

BTC Now

Lender of Record — Credit Box Parameters
Version 1.0 — Bank Partner Materials

01At-A-Glance

Min FICO
620
Max DTI
55–65%
Income Verification
Required (Plaid)
Eligible Borrowers
U.S. Residents, Natural Persons
Loan Terms
12–120 Months
Monthly Payment
$50–$10,000
Max Exposure
$10,000/mo Aggregate
Collateral
100% Bitcoin-Backed
Financing Cost
10–18% (FICO-Tiered)

025-Tier Credit Structure

All pricing is FICO-tiered with fixed rates for the life of the loan. Terminal Value represents the total of all scheduled payments over the full loan term, calculated using standard amortization.

TierFICO RangeAPRMax DTITerminal Value ($100K / 120mo)
Tier 1750+10%65%$158,581
Tier 2700–74912%60%$172,165
Tier 3670–69914%60%$186,319
Tier 4640–66916%55%$201,016
Tier 5620–63918%55%$216,222

Terminal Value = Monthly Payment × Term. Monthly Payment is calculated using the standard amortization formula: P × [r(1+r)n] / [(1+r)n – 1], where P = principal, r = monthly rate, n = number of payments.

0311 Hard Requirements

All of the following are non-negotiable eligibility requirements. Failure on any single criterion results in automatic decline. No exceptions, no manual overrides.

  1. Natural persons ONLY (no businesses, trusts, LLCs)
  2. U.S. resident
  3. 18 years or older
  4. Minimum FICO 620
  5. Max DTI 55–65% (FICO-tiered, including proposed payment)
  6. Must link bank account via Plaid
  7. Must pass Plaid income verification
  8. Must pass identity verification and OFAC screening
  9. No bankruptcies within 24 months
  10. Minimum 6 months verifiable income history
  11. No outstanding deficiency from previous BTC Now loan

Note: Multiple concurrent performing loans ARE permitted. A borrower in good standing may hold more than one active BTC Now installment plan simultaneously, subject to aggregate DTI and exposure limits.

04Payment Methods & Hierarchy

MethodEligible PaymentsFee
FBO Account BalanceAlways — charged FIRSTNo fee
ACH TransferAll paymentsNo fee
ACH Auto-PayAll — borrower-configuredNo fee
FedNowAll paymentsNo fee
Debit CardAll payments$5.00
Credit CardFIRST PAYMENT ONLY$5.00
Repay.com eCashIn-store cash at retailService provider fee

Charge Order: FBO Balance first → Auto-Pay → Manual Payment. The system always depletes the FBO account balance before initiating any external payment method.

053-Stage Loan Funding

STAGE 1
Agreement & First Payment
E-sign → First payment required BEFORE funds release. CC allowed for first payment only.
STAGE 2
FBO Account Funding
USD held in FBO account at the Bank. No conversion deadline. Installments continue.
STAGE 3
BTC Conversion via Kraken
Connect Kraken (or 1-click onboarding). 100% converted. BTC to Fireblocks Trust.

Stage 1 — Agreement & First Payment

Borrower e-signs the loan agreement. The first payment is required BEFORE any funds are released. Credit card is permitted for the first payment only. Funds are released within 1 business day of first payment confirmation.

Stage 2 — FBO Account Funding

USD proceeds are held in the borrower's FBO (For Benefit Of) account at the Bank Partner. There is no conversion deadline — the borrower decides when to convert. Monthly installment payments continue regardless of conversion status.

Stage 3 — BTC Conversion via Kraken

Borrower connects their Kraken account (or uses 1-click onboarding to create one). 100% of the loan amount is converted to Bitcoin. BTC is sent directly to the borrower's segregated wallet at Fireblocks Trust.

Pre-conversion cancellation: If a borrower cancels before BTC conversion, USD is returned. However, all installment payments already made are RETAINED (non-refundable). No credit bureau impact for pre-conversion cancellations.

06Collateral & Custody

Every loan is 100% Bitcoin-backed. The purchased Bitcoin serves as collateral for the duration of the loan and is held under institutional-grade custody.

Collateral
100% Bitcoin-Backed
Custodian
Fireblocks Trust Company
Key Architecture
MPC 2-of-3 Multi-Sig
Insurance Coverage
$750M+ Lloyd's of London
Wallet Structure
Segregated Per-Loan
Margin Calls
Never

No margin calls. No forced liquidations. Bitcoin price movements do not trigger any action against the borrower. The collateral is held until loan maturity or default — regardless of price volatility.

07Default & Collections

35-Day Delinquency Timeline

DayStatusAction
Day 1Payment MissedAutomated reminder sent
Day 77 Days Past DueSecond reminder sent
Day 1010 Days Past DueWarning issued; account flagged
Day 15Grace Period Expires$15 late fee applied; RIGHT TO CURE NOTICE
Day 16–34Cure Period (20 days)Weekly contact attempts
Day 35Cure ExpiresHuman review triggered
Day 35+Default ReviewIf confirmed, formal default notice issued
Post-ReviewConfirmed DefaultBTC seizure; credit bureaus notified

Chronic Delinquency Escalation

Cure events are tracked for the lifetime of the loan — they never reset.

OccurrenceAction
1st CureStandard 20-day cure process
2nd CureStandard cure + written warning
3rd CureStandard cure + FINAL WARNING
4th CureACCELERATION: Full terminal value due OR mandatory auto-pay enrollment

ACH Failure Policy

Critical: The 35-day grace/cure timeline does NOT apply to ACH failures. ACH failures follow an accelerated enforcement path.

EventConsequence
1st NSF$25 NSF fee + $15 late fee; borrower notified immediately
2nd Consecutive NSFIMMEDIATE ACCELERATION — full terminal value due within 15 days or BTC seizure

08Prepayment Terms

Prepayment Allowed
Any Time
Traditional Penalty
None
Yield Maintenance Fee
Required on Early Exit

Borrowers may prepay at any time with no traditional prepayment penalty. However, a yield maintenance fee is charged on early exit to compensate the lender for lost future interest. This is not a penalty — it is the contractual cost of the borrower exercising their prepayment option.

Yield Maintenance Formula

YM Fee = PV of remaining interest payments × (Loan Rate − Treasury Rate) / Loan Rate

When Yield Maintenance Applies

ScenarioYM FeeRationale
Customer exits early, BTC UPYesCustomer is profitable — fee is the price of the prepayment option
Customer exits early, BTC FLATYes, if proceeds coverApplied only to the extent covered by collateral
Customer exits early, BTC DOWNNo — WaivedTaking collateral loss is sufficient; fee is fully waived
Customer completes full termNoLender received all scheduled interest — no lost yield

Yield maintenance is only applied when the borrower is profitable on the transaction. It is waived on underwater exits, making it legally defensible and non-predatory. This mechanism is standard in CMBS, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac commercial loan products.

09Special Circumstances

Death of Borrower

Upon verified death of the borrower, the estate receives a 90-day decision period. The estate may either assume the loan (continuing payments under the same terms) or pay the full terminal value to close the account. No late fees are assessed during the 90-day period.

Hardship Deferral

ONE hardship deferral per loan lifetime, for up to 30 days. The borrower's account must be current or less than 15 days past due at the time of the request. Deferred payments are added to the end of the loan term.

Identity Theft

A police report is required to initiate an identity theft claim. Upon receipt, the account is immediately frozen and a 30-day FCRA investigation is opened. No collection activity occurs during the investigation period.

10-Day Cooling Off

A mandatory 10-day cooling-off period is enforced between loan applications. This prevents rapid successive applications and gives borrowers time to evaluate their financial position.

Force Majeure

10Regulatory Compliance

TILA (Truth in Lending Act)

All required disclosures are presented within the digital onboarding flow. APR, finance charges, total of payments, and payment schedule are disclosed before borrower acceptance. All disclosures are archived and auditable.

MLA (Military Lending Act)

All five credit tiers comply with the 36% MAPR cap (BTC Now tiers range 10–18%). DMDC (Defense Manpower Data Center) check is mandatory for every applicant to identify covered borrowers.

ECOA (Equal Credit Opportunity Act)

No discrimination on any prohibited basis. All applicants are evaluated using consistent, automated criteria. Adverse action notices are issued within 30 days of decline, citing specific reasons.

FCRA (Fair Credit Reporting Act)

Two-stage credit pull strategy. Monthly Metro 2 reporting to all three bureaus (Equifax, Experian, TransUnion) via Bloom Credit.

Credit Pull Strategy

Stage 1 — Soft Pull
Pre-Qualification
FICO Impact
None
Stage 2 — Hard Pull
Final Verification
Post-Acceptance Decline Rate
<1%

Stage 1 (Soft Pull): Used for pre-qualification. No impact to the borrower's FICO score. Allows borrowers to see their eligible tier and terms before committing.

Stage 2 (Hard Pull): Triggered only after the borrower accepts the pre-qualified offer. Final verification of creditworthiness. Post-acceptance decline rate is less than 1%, ensuring minimal borrower friction.