How the 8lends Platform Works: From Application to Investor Payouts
Fewer than 10% of borrowers make it onto 8lends. See how the rest of the journey unfolds, from a 100 USDC investment to your final repayment.
8lends is a P2B crowdlending platform: small and medium businesses get financing, while investors earn 19–25% annual interest in USDC. Every loan goes through Maclear AG’s due diligence, which checks over 40 criteria, and is backed by real collateral. Investments, interest payments, and principal repayments are all automated by smart contracts on the Base blockchain. The minimum investment is 100 USDC, and loan terms range from 4 to 16 months.
The full process from application to repayment
Step 1. Borrower application and due diligence
The company applies for financing through the 8lends website. The Maclear AG team then audits the business against more than 40 criteria:
- Financial strength (reporting, revenue, profit)
- Credit history of the company and its owners
- Collateral: type, liquidity, valuation
- Business model and plan for how the funds will be used
- Documentation: incorporation papers, registration, licences
After the audit, the borrower gets a credit rating from AAA to D. It’s important to note that fewer than 10% of applications are selected for listing on the platform.
Step 2. Project listing on the platform
The approved business is published on 8lends with all the key details:
- Loan amount
- Credit rating
- Interest rate (fixed, 19–25% per year in USDC)
- Loan term (4–16 months)
- Collateral type and valuation
- LTV – the loan-to-value ratio
- Buyback on the project, if applicable
The business then goes live with “Open” status and becomes available for investment.
Step 3. Investment
The investor connects a non-custodial wallet to the platform, completes KYC through Sumsub, and picks a project. The minimum investment is 100 USDC.
Investments are made through a smart contract on the Base network. The fundraiser contract address is public: 0xf435A133D6cDCb81061F18a4763560f9931DB57D. All transactions can be viewed on the blockchain explorer basescan.org.
Step 4. Pool closing and loan issue
When the pool reaches its target, the project automatically switches to “Funded” status:
- Funds are sent to the borrower.
- Interest starts accruing.
- The loan terms are locked into the smart contract and cannot be changed.
If the pool doesn’t hit its target by the end of the loan funding period, the project is marked “Not Funded”, and investors’ deposits are automatically returned to their wallets by the smart contract.
Step 5. Monthly interest payments
The borrower pays interest every month. The smart contract then automatically shares it out among investors in proportion to their stake in the pool.
The first payment comes one month after the pool closes. After that, payments arrive monthly until the end of the loan.
Investors can withdraw accrued interest to their wallet at any time (Claim USDC) or leave it in the smart contract.
Step 6. Loan principal repayment
The principal is repaid in one lump sum at the end of the term (bullet repayment). Together with the final interest payment, the investor gets their original capital back.
Once fully repaid, the project moves to “Repaid” status.
What happens if a borrower defaults
If the borrower misses interest payments or fails to repay the principal for 60 days in a row, the project goes into default. What happens next depends on the project type:
| Project Type | What happens |
|---|---|
| **Standard RWA Project** | Maclear AG, as Collateral Agent, starts the collateral foreclosure process. This takes between 1 and 12 months. The proceeds are distributed among investors in proportion to their shares. |
| **Buyback Project** | A third party buys out the investor’s position, returning 100% of the loan principal under the Buyback programme. The foreclosure process does not affect the investor. |
8lends track record as of May 2026: 0 defaults since the platform launched on 3 March 2025.
Where to see all transactions
| Location | What you see there |
|---|---|
| 8lends Personal Account | Active investments, balance, payment history, project statuses |
| [basescan.org](https://basescan.org/) | All on-chain transactions, smart contract states, wallet balances |
| Project page on the platform | Loan parameters, credit rating, collateral, pool collection progress |
How 8lends is different from a bank loan
| Aspect | Bank loan | 8lends |
|---|---|---|
| Lender | Bank (lends its own funds) | Pool of investors via a smart contract |
| Approval time | 1–6 months | Often a few weeks |
| Transparency | bank decisions | Every project, with full details, is visible in your personal account at https://app.8lends.io/ |
| Custody of funds | Deposit in a bank account | Funds sit in a smart contract, not in platform accounts. All on-chain terms can be verified at basescan.org |
| Rate | Depends on bank policy | Depends on borrower rating and market conditions |
| Settlement | Banking infrastructure | USDC on the Base network |
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to close a pool?
It depends on the project size and investor demand. Small projects can close within days, larger ones may take several weeks. If the pool doesn’t close within the set timeframe, the project gets “Not Funded” status and deposits are automatically returned.
Can I invest in several projects at once?
Yes. Each investment is a separate position in its own project. You can spread your capital across multiple projects to diversify.
Who holds my funds before the pool closes?
Funds are held in a smart contract on the Base blockchain, not in any platform accounts. The contract terms are fixed and can be checked publicly. The platform cannot technically alter the distribution of funds after the contract is deployed.
Can I withdraw my investment before the end of the term?
Yes, through the Secondary Market – the Classifieds section in your personal account. You can list your active position for sale to another investor. There’s a 10% seller’s commission. Only full positions in the “Funded” stage can be sold.
What happens to the smart contract if the platform stops operating?
Smart contracts on Base run independently of the platform’s frontend. Loan terms are immutable – they’re hard-coded into the contract and can’t be changed. Active loans will keep being repaid, and you can withdraw funds directly through basescan.org.
How can I check that the smart contracts are secure?
8lends smart contracts have been independently audited by CertiK and Cyberscope. The audit reports are publicly available on the auditors’ websites.
See also:
Risk Disclosure: Investing on 8lends involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Returns are not guaranteed and depend on borrowers repaying on time. Past performance does not guarantee future results. 8lends is a platform operated by CLEARCHAIN CORP, registered with FINTRAC (Canada) as a Money Services Business. Maclear AG (Switzerland), a member of PolyReg SRO supervised by FINMA, acts as the Collateral Agent. Regulatory framework as of September 2026.