Coinbase and Better Mortgage have made Bitcoin-backed mortgages generally available to borrowers in the United States, opening a product the companies say is meant to let homebuyers use Bitcoin holdings without selling them.
The crypto exchange and the Nasdaq-listed lender said Wednesday that the service was designed in accordance with the Federal National Mortgage Association, or Fannie Mae. Under the structure described by the companies, U.S. borrowers can use Bitcoin as collateral for a down payment without having to sell their BTC and without facing margin calls.
First mortgage using Bitcoin collateral closed in June
Coinbase and Better had already announced the funding of their first Bitcoin-backed mortgage in June. With the broader rollout, the companies said they want to serve younger Americans seeking to buy a home while holding a meaningful share of their wealth in Bitcoin.
Better Mortgage Chief Technology Officer Ziggy Jonsson said that in 2025, high interest rates, record home prices, and limited inventory pushed the median age of a first-time homebuyer to 40.
Jonsson said Coinbase has millions of monthly users worldwide, and that allowing Coinbase One members to pledge crypto as collateral without selling their holdings is opening a new path to homeownership for borrowers whose wealth increasingly lives onchain.
Coinbase One members can receive up to $10,000 back
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.」
The companies added that Coinbase One members are eligible for a rebate equal to 1% of the mortgage value, with the benefit capped at $10,000.
Michigan couple closed the debut loan
The first loan under the program was closed in June by Joe and Amy, a married couple in Michigan. The companies said at the time that the pair used their Bitcoin holdings as collateral to fund the down payment instead of liquidating their position.
Bitcoin mortgage market remains small
Crypto-backed lender Milo said earlier this year that it had surpassed $100 million in digital asset mortgages, including a record $12 million loan, as more high-net-worth and institutional clients used Bitcoin as collateral for home financing.
Bitcoin-backed mortgages remain a niche product. Still, Ledn, one of the larger lenders in the segment, has published research claiming that the market could grow from about $3 billion today to $1 trillion over the next 10 years.
The report first appeared in Bitcoin Magazine and was written by Mathew Di Salvo.