Overview
Welcome to the user guide for Anchorage Digital’s Atlas collateral management service. This manual provides a comprehensive overview of the platform’s features, core concepts, and operational procedures. Anchorage Digital’s Atlas collateral management is an agency service designed for institutional lenders and borrowers engaged in crypto-secured transactions. The service mitigates counterparty risk and reduces operational overhead by combining our secure, regulated custody with a powerful, automated risk monitoring platform. Typically, Anchorage Innovations LLC acts as the collateral manager (agent), while Anchorage Digital Bank, N.A. (an OCC-chartered federal trust bank) or Anchorage Digital Singapore Pte. Ltd. (licensed by MAS) acts as the Custodian.Communications
Approved Channels All communications in connection with Collateral Management Services will be made over email. General communication should be directed to admin-collateralmanagement@anchorage.com. For notices, urgent items, or operations submissions, please use collateralmanagement@anchorage.com. Collateral Management Team The Anchorage Digital Collateral Management team is responsible for monitoring transaction health, issuing margin calls and other notices, initiating transfers of Collateral Assets, and providing reporting.Key Terminology
Understanding the following terms is essential for using the collateral management platform effectively.Participants
- Pledgor: The borrower or counterparty who provides digital assets as collateral to secure an obligation.
- Secured Party: The institution or lender who provides credit and receives collateral from a Pledgor.
- Collateral Manager: Third-party role fulfilled by Anchorage Digital, combining the Custodian (holding assets) and the collateral manager (monitoring risk).
Transaction Components
- Exposure: The outstanding transaction or obligation being secured, such as a loan or repo.
- Collateral Package: The collection of assets pledged by a Pledgor to secure an Exposure. This is the primary object for monitoring.
- Risk Metrics (LTV): The critical metric measuring the ratio of the Exposure to the weighted value of the collateral. The system calculates this in near real-time using the following formula: LTV = Value of Secured Transaction ÷ Weighted Value of Collateral Package
States
The current condition of a Collateral Package, determined by its LTV against predefined thresholds.- Healthy: Collateral levels do not require any actions as they fall between the need for a margin return and margin call.
- Margin Return: Pledgor is eligible for a return of collateral. Upon entering this state, one of the following Actions will be taken: None or Sweep.
- Margin Call: The Pledgor is required to top up collateral within the defined cure period in an amount that will bring the LTV back to the return-to-LTV level. If the cure period expires prior to a valid top up being received, the system takes one of the following Actions: None, Full, Partial, or Sweep.
- Critical: Unless Cure Period Protection is configured and the cure period has not expired, the system will immediately take one of the following Actions: None, Full Liquidation, Partial Liquidation, or Sweep.
Actions
A pre-configured, automated response the system executes when a Collateral Package enters a specific state.- None: Simply notify both parties.
- Full Liquidation: Full liquidation of collateral and repayment of the loan, reducing both the Exposure value and collateral value to zero.
- Partial Liquidation: Partial liquidation of collateral and partial repayment of the loan in the amount that will bring the LTV back to a healthy state.
- Sweep: Move the entirety of the collateral balance to the Secured Party. This will reduce both the Exposure value and collateral value to zero.
Concepts and Inputs
- Cure Period: A configurable grace period (in hours) following a margin call, during which a Pledgor can deposit additional collateral to resolve a shortfall before a default action is taken.
- Return-to-LTV: A specific LTV target that a Collateral Package must reach to return to a Healthy state after a non-healthy state change. It is important to note that if the price of an asset changes during transit, it is possible the quantity sent will be insufficient to cure the state by the time it is received.
- Warning Level: Each LTV threshold can have a warning level set “inside” of the relevant threshold. Upon breach, Anchorage notifies parties that the level is approaching.
- Operation: A record in the system’s transaction log indicating a change in a collateral balance (e.g., TOP_UP) or an Exposure balance (e.g., PAY_DOWN).
Transaction Lifecycle
- Setup & configuration: The Secured Party and Pledgor execute bilateral transaction agreements. The parties provide transaction details and risk parameters to Anchorage Digital, including LTV thresholds, eligible assets, cure periods, and predefined actions.
- Funding: The Pledgor deposits the required collateral into their segregated vault/wallet at the designated Anchorage Digital custodian. The Secured Party funds the loan/Exposure and notifies the Anchorage Digital collateral management team.
- Monitoring: The system begins 24/7 automated monitoring, calculating the LTV in near real-time.
- Threshold events: If the LTV breaches a configured threshold, the system automatically takes the pre-defined Action. This could include sending a warning notification, initiating a margin call to start the cure period tracking, triggering critical liquidation processes, or notifying parties of a margin return.
- Resolution & reporting: If a margin call occurs, the Pledgor uses a TOP_UP operation to deposit additional collateral and satisfy the return-to-LTV requirement. If a margin call is not cured or a critical threshold is breached, Anchorage Digital coordinates collateral liquidation via its trading desks. Participants have continuous access to the status of their packages via API and dashboard.
Asset Pricing for Valuation
The Atlas Collateral Management system requires four primary parameters to determine the real-time valuation of assets within a Collateral Package. These settings dictate the data pipeline and logic used to calculate the Loan-to-Value (LTV) ratio. In the event that the Price Source is unavailable or Anchorage Digital reasonably determines that the prices provided by the Pricing Source are unreliable due to low or inconsistent trading volumes or other factors, Anchorage Digital may use an alternative pricing source selected at its reasonable sole discretion. Price Source Provider Defines the upstream data aggregator or oracle used by the system to fetch market data. We generally utilize Amberdata for centralized exchange (CEX) market data aggregation and Chainlink for decentralized, on-chain price feeds. Price Source Specifies the exact venue or data feed queried from the selected provider. Most major exchanges are supported. Pricing Type Determines which specific metric from the Price Source’s order book or trade history is extracted to establish the asset’s current system value. The options include the Bid (highest outstanding buy order), Ask (lowest outstanding sell order), Mid (calculated median between Bid and Ask), Last (execution price of the most recently matched trade), or Default (used for Chainlink and Index data feeds). Asset Weight A numerical parameter used to apply a risk discount (haircut) to the calculated market value of a specific asset before it is aggregated into the total Collateral Package value. This is configurable from 0% to 100%. For example, if an asset’s spot price evaluates to $1,000 and the weight is configured to 80%, the system recognizes $800 of value per quantity for LTV calculations.Operations Management
Operations modify the balances of the Collateral Package and/or the Exposure. As a rule, Anchorage will automatically book operations which it is privy to, such as additional collateral deposits and collateral returns. At times, Anchorage may not be aware that an operation that affects the balance of a loan has occurred, such as a lender sending fiat loan principal to the borrower through traditional rails. When this is the case, we request that the appropriate party inform Anchorage via API or by an authorized email address.Collateral Operations
- INITIAL_DEPOSIT: Increases collateral balance. Used for the first collateral deposit.
- TOP_UP: Increases collateral balance. Used to add collateral, often in response to a margin call.
- MARGIN_RETURN: Decreases collateral balance when excess collateral is returned to the Pledgor.
- CLOSE_RETURN: Reduces the entire collateral balance to zero at the conclusion of a lending arrangement.
- REHYPE_OUT / REHYPE_IN: Logs when collateral has been rehypothecated out of or returned to its original custody account.
- GAS_FEE: Captures costs for on-chain withdrawal or deposit related to collateral operations.
Exposure Operations
- INITIAL_FUNDING: Increases Exposure value. Denotes the initial loan amount.
- PAY_UP: Increases Exposure value. Used for an upsize in the loan.
- PAY_DOWN: Decreases Exposure value. Used for a partial loan repayment.
- INTEREST_ACCRUAL: Increases Exposure value to account for accrued interest.
- INTEREST_PAYDOWN: Decreases Exposure value when accrued interest has been paid.
- CLOSE: Decreases Exposure value to zero, indicating full repayment.
- GAS_FEE: Captures costs for on-chain withdrawal or deposit related to Exposure operations.
Liquidation Operations (System-Generated)
- FULL_LIQUIDATION: Reduces both Exposure and collateral to zero after a complete sale of collateral.
- PARTIAL_LIQUIDATION: Reduces Exposure and collateral by the amount needed to bring the LTV back to a healthy state.
- SWEEP: Transfers the entire collateral balance to the Secured Party, reducing both balances to zero.
Liquidations Monitoring & Management
Anchorage Digital provides robust liquidation capabilities through the Atlas platform. Our procedures are designed to protect the Secured Party’s interests through real-time monitoring, rapid execution, and flexible liquidation options. 1. Monitoring and Triggering Mechanisms The platform features 24/7 monitoring with real-time price updates for all collateralized assets. Alerts are sent in real-time for warnings, margin calls, returns, and critical states via email and API to both parties and the Anchorage team. Our integrated on-call system employs redundant SMS, voice, and email alerts to ensure immediate awareness and execution without delay. 2. Order Management and Liquidity Multiple orders are handled on a First-In, First-Out (FIFO) basis, determined by the exact timestamp the liquidation was triggered. Liquidity sourcing and the execution approach vary by the category of Collateral Asset being liquidated, as described below. Supported Asset Categories. Liquidation capabilities are available for the following categories of Collateral Assets, in each case subject to the eligibility parameters agreed by the parties at setup and to the terms of the governing Collateral Management documentation: (i) native digital assets, whether unstaked or staked; and (ii) tokenized real-world assets (“RWAs”) that are not securities. Native Digital Assets (Unstaked). Spot liquidations of native digital assets are routed to Anchorage Hold, an agency execution desk, which accesses liquidity in the over-the-counter (OTC) market through relationships with the major liquidity providers in the space. Anchorage aggregates the liquidity available at the time of execution and trades against the most advantageous terms then reasonably available, unless otherwise agreed with the parties. Staked Digital Assets. Staked assets are generally subject to protocol-defined unbonding or unlock periods and therefore may not be available for spot liquidation at the time a liquidation is triggered. For staked collateral, the liquidation agent role and process are established with the Secured Party at setup and liquidations will be effected through a delayed settlement, in which the sale is executed following completion of the applicable unbonding period unless the parties agree otherwise. Tokenized Real-World Assets (Non-Security). For eligible non-security tokenized RWAs, the Sweep Action is supported across all eligible RWAs. Liquidation by sale or redemption (Full or Partial Liquidation) is currently supported for a limited set of tokenized RWAs for which an appropriate liquidity or redemption mechanism is in place. Anchorage evaluates additional tokenized RWAs on a case-by-case basis and may extend liquidation coverage through additional venues or liquidity provider relationships where commercially appropriate. Scope of this Section. The descriptions in this section are provided for informational purposes and do not modify, expand, or otherwise affect the rights, obligations, standards of care, or limitations of liability of Anchorage Digital or any Anchorage affiliate as set forth in the Collateral Management Agreement and related governing documentation. In the event of any inconsistency between this section and such documentation, the governing documentation controls.Participant Email Configuration
To ensure communications are directed to the appropriate stakeholders, the platform uses three distinct email lists for each participant. This allows for a clear separation of duties and information flow.- Notification (notice_emails): Receives all high-priority, time-sensitive alerts and formal notifications, including margin calls, cure period expirations, and default notices.
- Reporting (reporting_emails): Designated for all standard, periodic reporting, such as daily or monthly collateral valuation summaries.
- Configuration (configuration_emails): Authorized email addresses permitted to provide ad-hoc instructions or submit CSV files to update thresholds, modify assets, or change participant details.
Email and Webhook Notifications
The collateral management system will send out email notices to the Secured Party and Pledgor for specific events, subject to internal logic that prevents alert fatigue.- Warning Levels: Warning LTVs can be configured in both margin call and critical states and must be lower than the corresponding threshold configuration. Warnings are only sent once every 24 hours to avoid unnecessary communication loops.
- State Transitions: An email notification is sent immediately upon transition to a Healthy, Margin Return, Margin Call, or Critical state. These emails include all relevant metadata, such as current LTV, thresholds, return-to-LTV targets, suggested action amounts, and cure period deadlines.
- Cure Period Expiry: A direct notification is sent upon the expiry of a margin call cure period detailing the impending action (Full liquidation, Partial liquidation, Sweep).
- Webhook: Webhook notifications can be configured for state transitions. They provide the exact same real-time information and metadata as the standard email notifications.