Figure sets out plans to launch crypto-backed mortgages

Layer 1s • March 23, 2022, 7:25AM EDT

Loans platform Figure has opened its waiting list for crypto-backed mortgages in the US, in a move that would let borrowers put up bitcoin (BTC) or ethereum (ETH) as collateral.

Borrowers will be able to take out mortgages worth up to $20 million for a 30-year loan, according to a LinkedIn post by the company's co-founder, Mike Cagney.

The loan instrument, set to launch in April, will allow payments with the crypto collateral. Meanwhile, Figure says it won't rehypothecate the assets.

Figure follows several other companies into the crypto-backed mortgage market, in a move that speaks to the growing interest in bringing digital assets to the housing market.

In December, Ledn has also announced a new bitcoin-backed mortgage product, which will allow users to borrow to buy a home with their bitcoin holdings as collateral. When it announced the product, Ledn said it was targeting over $100 million in bitcoin-backed mortgage originations by the end of the first quarter of 2022.

Earlier this year, crypto credit company Milo also announced a crypto-backed mortgage product.

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Lucy is an editor focusing on NFTs, gaming and the metaverse. Prior to joining she worked as a freelancer, with bylines in Wired, Newsweek and The Wall Street Journal, among other publications. Follow her on Twitter: @LHM1.