Unchained
Unchained is a Bitcoin company in the Custody category, founded in 2016 by Joe Kelly (CEO), Dhruv Bansal.
The Idea
'Collaborative custody', a multisig model where Unchained holds one key and the client holds two, meaning the company can never unilaterally access customer Bitcoin. Launched its first product (Bitcoin-collateralized lending) in 2017.
Early Traction
Unchained found product-market fit with serious, long-term Bitcoin holders who wanted to borrow against their coins or hold them in vaults without giving up their keys. It raised a $25M Series A in 2021 led by NYDIG, which also extended a $150M credit facility, the largest single-source lending facility in the industry at the time.
Peak Stats
Unchained secures more than 100,000 BTC in collaborative custody and has originated over $1 billion in Bitcoin-backed loans since 2017.
Status Today
Active. Expanding into full financial services (trading, retirement accounts, inheritance planning) for Bitcoin holders.
Why It Matters
Unchained launched Bitcoin-backed lending without rehypothecation back in 2017, years before Celsius, BlockFi, and Voyager blew up doing the opposite. Its conservative, keys-stay-with-the-client model looked overly cautious at the time and was vindicated when those lenders collapsed, making Unchained a template for how Bitcoin financial services can work without gambling with customer coins.