Crypto-backed mortgages… real shift or just noise?
Has anyone here been following Fannie Mae moving forward with crypto-backed mortgage structures?
Today, Fannie Mae announced it will begin allowing crypto-backed mortgage structures for the first time.
From what I’ve seen, this isn’t about counting crypto the same as cash. It’s more along the lines of being able to pledge assets like Bitcoin as collateral instead of liquidating for a down payment.
From a borrower perspective, that’s pretty interesting. A lot of investors today hold a meaningful portion of their net worth in crypto, but when it comes to qualifying for financing, it’s basically ignored unless you sell. That’s always felt like a gap. This looks like a step toward closing that gap while still underwriting the risk conservatively. That said, I’m trying to think through how this actually plays out in practice.
Volatility is the obvious issue. If markets swing hard, how do lenders protect against that? Are we talking heavy haircuts, margin call-type structures, or something else? Also curious how people here would actually use something like this.
Would you keep your crypto exposure and pledge it? Or would you still rather liquidate and come in clean on a deal?
Feels like this could be meaningful long term, but I’m not convinced it becomes a go-to option right away. Interested to hear what others think about this.