Can I take a loan against stock options?
A margin loan — also known as a portfolio line of credit — allows you to borrow against a portfolio of stocks you've been investing in. Similar to a home equity loan, you can get more favorable interest rates when taking out a margin loan. If the market is high, it's a favorable time to take out one of these loans.
It's called a portfolio line of credit. Otherwise known as borrowing against your stock portfolio. This cash is available at low interest rates – lower than most personal loans, auto loans, mortgages and HELOC's 1. Your stock is serving as collateral, and therefore reducing risk for the lender.
The short answer to “Can you use stocks as collateral for a loan?” is yes. Read on to learn how to borrow against stocks and keep reading to see how you can get personalized offers from our trusted partners through MoneyLion!
They don't need to sell stocks, which would trigger capital gains taxes. Instead, they can take loans against their shares. Securities based lending, securities based lines of credit, home equity lines of credit and structured lending are options for leveraging assets without selling them.
Investors are usually permitted to borrow up to 50% of the current market value of their investments (this may be less depending on the volatility of the stock involved and various other factors). Interest rates are typically competitive.
Get instant liquidity against your shares, without selling them. Avail instant loans up to 50% of the value of pledged shares, with a maximum limit of ₹20 lakh.
If you're new to trading, you might be wondering if options trading can put you into debt. In a word: yes.
Others will object to taxing the wealthy unless they actually use their gains, but many of the wealthiest actually do use their gains through the borrowing loophole: They get rich, borrow against those gains, consume the borrowing, and do not pay any tax. This is unfair.
Set up as a revolving line of credit, an SBLOC allows you to borrow money using securities held in your investment accounts as collateral. An SBLOC requires you to make monthly, interest-only payments, and the loan remains outstanding until you repay it.
Key takeaways
Since lenders require you to repay a personal loan, they are considered debt and not taxable income. If a lender forgives some or all of the loan, you may have to pay taxes on the forgiven loan amount. The IRS allows taxpayers to deduct interest on personal loan funds used for business purposes.
Is a loan against securities a good idea?
Lower interest rates
A loan against securities of any type has a lower interest rate than most unsecured loans and credit cards, as it is a secured loan. That means borrowers can pledge the shares as collateral for taking a loan. Depending on your stock list, a loan against shares' interest rate can go as low as 10.5%.
The classic approach to doubling your money is investing in a diversified portfolio of stocks and bonds, which is likely the best option for most investors. Investing to double your money can be done safely over several years, but there's a greater risk of losing most or all your money when you're impatient.

Product | Term | Rate |
---|---|---|
Personal Unsecured Loans up to $10,000 for a term of up to 60 months.2 | 36 Months | 9.99% |
Personal Secured Loans up to $20,000 for term of up to 60 months. | 36 Months | 9.37% |
Securities lending isn't without some risk. For example, it's possible that you won't get paid back after lending out your securities. Many brokerages try to limit this risk by requiring that borrowers have large amounts of collateral before they can borrow securities.
Typically, publicly traded stocks listed on recognized stock exchanges are eligible. This includes shares of well-established companies across sectors.
The strategy is called 'Buy, Borrow, Die'. This approach involves buying appreciating assets like stocks, collectibles, and particularly real estate; borrowing against these assets at less than their appreciation rate; and eventually passing the assets down to heirs, often with little or no capital gains tax liability.
Margin. What it is: Just as a bank can allow you to borrow against the equity in your home, your brokerage firm can lend you money against the value of eligible stocks, bonds, exchange-traded funds, and mutual funds in your portfolio.
You maintain full ownership rights on the shares you loan out. Any dividends the borrower receives are forwarded to you (and treated as ordinary income by the tax code). You can also sell at any time, at which point the stock is recalled and the loan canceled.
Borrowing against assets like real estate and securities allows individuals to access funds without incurring capital gains taxes, using financial tools such as HELOCs and SBLOCs to leverage appreciating assets efficiently.
Exercising without out-of-pocket costs is also possible. You can use this strategy to exercise your options and offload enough shares to pay the exercise price plus applicable taxes all at the same time. It is your choice to cash out completely or maintain the remaining shares.
Do I owe money if my stock goes negative?
If you're wondering what happens when your stock goes negative or asking, “can stocks go negative?” The answer is no. While a stock's value can fall to zero, it cannot go negative. You will never owe money on a stock that drops to zero, though, sadly, you can lose more money than you initially invested.
1. Non-recourse financing. If you don't have enough money to self-fund the exercise of your stock options and loans are too risky, your next best option could be non-recourse financing. Non-recourse financing is a cash advance that covers the cost of exercising plus any tax burden that exercising incurs.
- #1. Credit Card Debt. Credit card debt is one of the most significant contributors to consumer debt. ...
- #2. Lottery Tickets. ...
- #3. Expensive Cars. ...
- #4. Impulse Purchases. ...
- #5. Late Fees. ...
- #6. Designer Clothes. ...
- #7. Groceries and Household Items. ...
- #8. Luxury Housing.
If a millionaire doesn't budget properly and starts spending on personal chefs, expensive cars, and other luxury amenities, they may quickly run out of money. Sometimes millionaires, especially new millionaires, feel they have so much money that they lose perspective on what they can afford.
Loan Against Securities are typically offered as an overdraft facility in your account after you have deposited your securities. You can draw money from the account, and you pay interest only on the loan amount you use and for the period you use it. For example, you are offered a loan against shares of Rs 2 lakhs.