How to Use Liquidium | Guide to Native Cross-Chain Lending

TL;DR

• Simple lets you create a loan without an account or wallet connection. Signing in is optional.
• Advanced requires a profile and lets you supply assets, borrow against a combined portfolio, repay debt, and withdraw eligible balances.
• Liquidium handles supported cross-chain routes inside one app, so you do not need to operate a bridge or wrap assets yourself.
• Rates, liquidity, fees, supported assets, confirmation estimates, and risk parameters can change. Use the live app as the source of truth.

Liquidium lets you borrow against crypto, supply assets to earn variable yield, and manage positions across supported chains. The app has two modes: Simple for a direct loan and Advanced for portfolio-based lending and borrowing.

A common route uses native BTC as collateral to borrow a supported stablecoin without selling the Bitcoin first. The live market determines which stablecoins are available, the rate, and how much you can borrow.

Start with the right mode

Open the Liquidium app. The Simple/Advanced selector stays at the top of the interface, so you can switch between the two experiences.

Choose Simple when you want to:

• create one dedicated loan
• continue without signing in or connecting a wallet
• send collateral to a loan-specific supply address
• manage the position through its Loan ID, receipt, addresses, and Simple Portfolio
• repay by sending the borrowed asset to the loan's repay address

Choose Advanced when you want to:

• sign in and manage a portfolio of supplied and borrowed positions
• supply collateral to your Advanced portfolio
• use several eligible positions together
• monitor combined portfolio health
• repay or withdraw through the actions offered for the selected asset and route

Most borrowers who want a direct loan can start with Simple. Advanced is useful when you want to supply assets for yield, borrow against several eligible positions, or manage everything through one signed-in portfolio.

Simple loan borrow view

How sign-in works

Simple opens without an account. While signed out, the app stores recent Simple Loans in the current browser and labels them as saved on that device only.

You can sign in with Internet Identity or a supported wallet. Signing in keeps Simple Loans on your profile so you can open them from another device. It also lets you reuse saved addresses and apply your configured profile email to loan notifications.

Advanced stores supplied balances, debt, linked accounts, and portfolio history on your profile, so you must sign in to use it. Wallet availability changes by chain, browser, and installed extensions. Check the wallet picker when you sign in instead of relying on a static list.

Read the profile guide for linking accounts, notifications, and profile settings.

How to use Simple

Simple creates one loan with its own addresses, Loan ID, and receipt. You can fund it from a compatible wallet, exchange account, or hardware-wallet setup without connecting that account to Liquidium.

1. Choose what to borrow and what to use as collateral

Select Simple, then Borrow. Choose the asset you want to receive and the collateral you want to deposit.

Enter the borrow amount and review the required collateral, live rate, LTV, and network fees. The app shows the routes and liquidity available at that moment. Leave room for collateral-price movement instead of borrowing at the maximum.

Simple has its own ICP assets toggle inside the token picker. Enable it when you want to select ICP or a supported ckAsset such as ckBTC, ckETH, ckUSDC, or ckUSDT for that Simple Loan. Leave it disabled when you want the native-chain version of the asset. This Simple toggle is separate from the ICP-assets setting used by Advanced.

2. Sign in or continue on the current device

Sign-in is optional. Use Internet Identity or a supported wallet if you want the loan attached to your profile. Close the sign-in flow if you want to continue without an account.

Save the Loan ID and receipt either way. You can use them to find the loan if you clear your browser data or move to another device.

3. Enter the refund and destination addresses

The refund address receives your collateral after full repayment or after a failed loan-opening refund. The destination address receives the borrowed asset after the collateral confirms and the loan opens.

Both addresses must support the selected asset and network. Signed-in users can save compatible addresses and reuse them across Simple and Advanced. Check every character before generating the loan because the addresses cannot be changed afterward.

4. Generate and fund the loan

Review the settings, confirm the address acknowledgment, and select Generate loan. Liquidium creates:

• a six-character Loan ID
• a supply address for collateral
• a repay address for partial or full repayments
• a downloadable receipt

Send the collateral asset and amount shown by the app to the supply address. The loan opens after Liquidium detects and processes the deposit under the displayed terms. If market movement pushes the LTV outside the accepted opening range, the app may wait for more collateral or process a refund.

Liquidium's current Bitcoin flow waits for four confirmations. Bitcoin blocks average around 10 minutes, so four confirmations take about 40 minutes under typical conditions. Actual block timing varies, and Liquidium still needs to detect and finalize the transaction afterward. Follow the live status in the app.

5. Manage the loan

Open Simple, then Portfolio, to see loans stored in the browser or synced to your profile. You can also use Find loan with a Loan ID, related address, or transaction ID.

From the loan details, you can add collateral, repay, review debt and LTV, inspect transaction history, and manage notifications. A partial repayment lowers debt but does not release collateral. Liquidium returns the collateral to the refund address after the full debt has been repaid and processed.

The Simple Loan documentation covers failed openings, repayments, notifications, loan states, and recovery in more detail.

How to use Advanced

Advanced combines supported supply and debt positions in one signed-in portfolio. Use it when you want to earn yield on supplied assets, use eligible positions as collateral, or manage more than one position together.

1. Sign in and supply an asset

Select Advanced, then Supply. Sign in with Internet Identity or a supported wallet and choose an asset from the live picker.

Enter an amount, review the supply APY and portfolio-health effect, then choose the funding method offered for that asset. Depending on the route, you can supply from a linked wallet or send funds to an asset-specific deposit address.

The supply starts earning after Liquidium detects and finalizes it. Until then, the app shows the action as pending. Read the Advanced supply guide for current funding routes and finalization behavior.

2. Borrow against eligible collateral

Open Borrow and choose an asset available in the app. Enter the amount or use the slider, then review:

• current and projected borrow APY
• current and projected portfolio health
• available pool liquidity and the maximum amount
• the network fee and estimated amount delivered

Select Borrow and follow the authorization and destination steps. Depending on the selected route, Liquidium may deliver the funds to a linked wallet or a compatible destination address.

The Advanced borrowing guide explains the current asset picker, destination options, pending states, and portfolio-health calculation.

3. Monitor the whole portfolio

Advanced calculates risk across eligible collateral and debt in the profile. A change in one asset can affect the health of the combined position.

Supplying more eligible collateral or repaying debt can improve portfolio health after the transaction processes. Borrowing more, accrued interest, or a fall in collateral value can move the portfolio toward liquidation.

Open the borrowed position from Portfolio to repay part or all of the debt. Repaying does not withdraw supplied collateral. Use the separate withdrawal flow once the balance is eligible. See the repayment guide for the current process.

How Liquidium handles cross-chain lending

Liquidium uses canisters on the Internet Computer to coordinate supported lending operations across networks. Chain Fusion lets those canisters read supported chains and authorize transactions. Chain-key assets handle the internal pool accounting behind native-chain deposits and withdrawals.

From the app, you choose collateral, a borrow asset, and a supported destination. Liquidium coordinates the cross-chain and asset-representation steps inside the protocol, so you do not have to operate a third-party bridge or create a wrapped position by hand.

Liquidium is non-custodial. Canister vaults and smart contracts manage supplied assets and loan positions, and Liquidium does not take your private keys. Collateral remains locked by the protocol while it secures an open debt position.

Cross-chain transactions still pass through multiple networks and protocol components. Deposits, borrows, repayments, and withdrawals can remain pending while Liquidium waits for confirmations and completes finalization. Learn more on the cross-chain lending page.

Advanced also supports selected ICP and ckAsset routes through asset-specific deposit addresses. Open your profile settings, select General, and enable ICP assets when you want to use the ckAsset version of a supported asset. Follow the address format shown by the app and use the ICP assets and Oisy guide for the current flow.

ICP asset toggle

Rates, portfolio health, and liquidation

Liquidium loans are overcollateralized. Your collateral must support more value than the debt under the market's risk settings.

Simple shows LTV for the individual loan. Advanced shows portfolio health across eligible supplied and borrowed positions. Both indicate how close the debt is to the liquidation threshold.

Borrow rates can change with pool utilization. Interest adds to the debt while the position remains open. Collateral prices and market risk settings can also change the room available before liquidation.

If a loan or portfolio reaches its liquidation threshold, the protocol may sell collateral to repay debt. Adding collateral or repaying debt can reduce risk after the transaction confirms and processes. During a fast market, the position may reach liquidation before a pending action completes.

Check these details before confirming

• Mode: Confirm whether you are creating a Simple Loan or using an Advanced portfolio.
• Assets and networks: Verify the collateral, borrow asset, and destination network.
• LTV or portfolio health: Leave a buffer for price movement and accrued interest.
• Rate and liquidity: Review the live APY, available amount, and market limits.
• Fees and delivered amount: Check the network fee and the amount expected at the destination.
• Addresses: Confirm the full supply, refund, destination, or repayment address for the selected flow.
• Repayment path: Know which asset and network you must use to repay.
• Status: Wait for the app to show that a transaction has processed before assuming it changed your position.

Crypto-backed loans carry liquidation, rate, liquidity, smart-contract, network, and user-error risk. Liquidium has completed an independent Trail of Bits review of the ICP canisters used for Cross-Chain Loans, but a security review cannot remove those risks. Read the security-review announcement for details.

Use Liquidium

Open Liquidium and choose Simple or Advanced based on how you want to manage the position.

This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.

FAQs

Do I need an account to use Liquidium?

No account is required for a Simple Loan. Advanced requires a profile. You can also sign in while using Simple if you want to keep loans on your profile, open them from another device, reuse saved addresses, and manage notifications.

Do I need to connect a wallet for a Simple Loan?

No. Generate the loan and send collateral to its supply address from a compatible wallet, exchange account, or hardware-wallet setup. Connecting a supported wallet is one optional way to sign in.

Can I sign in without a crypto wallet?

Yes. Internet Identity is available as a sign-in method. You still need a compatible way to send collateral or repayment assets on the relevant network.

Do I need to wrap or bridge my assets?

The Liquidium flow does not require you to operate a bridge or create wrapped assets by hand. The protocol uses Chain Fusion and chain-key infrastructure internally for supported routes.

Is Liquidium custodial?

Liquidium is non-custodial. Protocol canisters and smart contracts manage assets under the lending rules without taking your wallet private keys. Collateral remains locked while it secures an open loan or debt position.

Which assets can I supply or borrow?

The list depends on the mode, available markets, pool liquidity, and current network support. Check the live asset picker before planning a transaction.

How long does a deposit or borrow take?

Liquidium's current Bitcoin flow uses four confirmations. Bitcoin blocks average around 10 minutes, so this takes about 40 minutes under typical conditions. Actual block timing varies, and Liquidium still needs to detect and finalize the transaction. Other networks have different requirements, so follow the pending status and estimate shown in the app.

What is the difference between LTV and portfolio health?

LTV compares debt value with collateral value for a loan. Portfolio health expresses how much safety remains before an Advanced portfolio reaches its liquidation threshold. In both cases, monitor the value shown by the app and leave room for market movement.

Can I repay early?

Yes. Simple and Advanced positions support partial or full repayment. Interest continues while debt remains active. In a Simple Loan, partial repayment lowers debt but does not release collateral.