Coinbase Global has partnered with Better Home & Finance to offer a mortgage structure that lets qualified borrowers pledge digital assets held in Coinbase accounts to fund down payments on standard conforming mortgages built to Fannie Mae guidelines.
Under the arrangement, borrowers pledge crypto—such as Bitcoin (BTC) or USDC—held at Coinbase as collateral for a separate loan used to cover the down payment, while the primary mortgage remains a conventional, Fannie Mae–eligible loan originated and serviced by Better. Coinbase says this lets buyers keep exposure to digital assets rather than liquidating them to cash for a home purchase.
Coinbase framed the product as a new way for crypto to play a direct role in U.S. housing finance, moving beyond being an asset considered in underwriting to being a component of mortgage financing. The announcement follows regulatory and industry moves toward recognizing crypto in mortgage frameworks: in June the Federal Housing Finance Agency directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to prepare proposals to treat cryptocurrency as an asset in mortgage risk assessments without forcing conversion to U.S. dollars.
Coinbase noted several safeguards and limits. Pledged assets are locked and cannot be traded while used as collateral. Market volatility does not automatically trigger margin calls so long as borrowers remain current on payments, and mortgage terms do not change once the loan is active. Nevertheless, Coinbase acknowledged the arrangement substitutes upfront cash with additional secured debt and introduces risks tied to the pledged assets—price swings can affect borrowers’ overall financial exposure and decision-making even if they do not directly alter the mortgage.
The move builds on lenders’ recent, incremental integration of crypto into mortgage processes. In January, loan servicer Newrez said it would allow BTC, Ether (ETH), crypto ETFs and stablecoins to qualify as assets in underwriting without mandatory liquidation. In February, mortgage lender Rate launched its RateFi program, permitting verified crypto holdings to count toward reserves and, in some cases, income; however Rate still requires conversion of crypto into cash for down payments and closing costs.
Cointelegraph contacted Fannie Mae for comment but had not received a response before publication.
Former U.S. Representative Tim Ryan, a Coinbase advisory council member focused on middle-class affordability, told Cointelegraph the product shows how crypto can serve practical use cases, helping early investors turn digital-asset gains into funds for one of the biggest obstacles to homeownership—the down payment. “Digital assets have a place for working-class people… all the way down to getting a home,” Ryan said.
Affordability remains a major challenge: despite slower market activity from low inventory and higher rates, the median U.S. home price was above $405,000 in the fourth quarter. A typical 20% down payment to avoid private mortgage insurance still exceeds $80,000, a barrier that may be easier for some crypto holders to clear without liquidating holdings.
The Coinbase–Better product could widen how crypto is used across the mortgage stack, but it also places borrowers in a position where retaining crypto exposure comes with added secured debt and asset-related risk. Additional reporting for this story was provided by Sam Bourgi and Turner Wright.
