Key Takeaways:
Coinbase and Better Mortgage made Bitcoin-backed mortgages generally available, letting Coinbase One members pledge crypto as collateral with a $10,000 rebate cap.
"In 2025, high interest rates, record home prices and limited inventory pushed the median age of a first-time homebuyer to 40," Ziggy Jonsson, chief technology officer at Better Mortgage, said. "By allowing Coinbase One members to pledge crypto as collateral without selling their holdings, we're opening a new path toward homeownership for a generation of borrowers whose wealth increasingly lives onchain."
The first-lien product is structured under Fannie Mae guidelines as a standard conforming mortgage, originated and serviced by Better and powered by Coinbase. A waitlist opened in June generated more than $260 million in projected loan volume, with 76 percent of respondents already Coinbase One members and 60 percent planning to buy a home within six months. The expanded offer went into effect Aug. 12, extending the 1 percent lender credit to standard mortgages, home equity lines of credit and refinances.
The product marks a step toward mainstreaming crypto as collateral in U.S. housing finance. Crypto-backed lender Milo has surpassed $100 million in digital asset mortgages, including a record $12 million loan, while Ledn research projects the sector could grow from $3 billion to $1 trillion over the next decade.
The debut loan closed in June for a married Michigan couple, Joe and Amy, who used their Bitcoin holdings to fund their down payment rather than liquidating their position. Better has funded more than $110 billion in loans across its platform, giving the partnership a distribution channel that reaches beyond crypto-native borrowers.
"Our members already trust Coinbase for their financial lives," Ben Shen, head of financial services and loyalty products at Coinbase, said. "By enabling borrowers to pledge their digital assets in the mortgage underwriting process, we are allowing crypto to be more useful and powerful in the real world — expanding the pathways to homeownership while preserving long-term investment positions."
Coinbase Global Inc. traded at $180.85 per share as of the announcement. The partnership gives Coinbase a direct route into housing finance while Better adds digital assets to its lending stack, a combination that could pressure traditional lenders to consider crypto-collateralized products as younger homebuyers hold increasing wealth onchain.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
