Mortgage lender Rate is venturing further into the realm of digital assets with the launch of RateFi, a nationwide mortgage product that allows borrowers to use their verified cryptocurrency holdings to qualify for a mortgage without having to liquidate their assets.
The Chicago-based lender announced Tuesday that RateFi is now fully operational within its digital mortgage platform and available under non-QM (non-qualified mortgage) guidelines.
The move reflects broader changes in financial services, as lenders experiment with integrating digital assets into traditional underwriting operations while staying within established compliance frameworks.
How RateFi works
Under this program, eligible borrowers can use verified cryptocurrencies as reserves and, in some cases, as eligible income. Down payments and closing costs must still be paid in USD, but borrowers can convert cryptocurrencies to meet these requirements.
Lehto said the program includes standard anti-money laundering and verified customer checks. Although it operates within the company’s existing non-QM infrastructure rather than through a matching channel backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, it does not currently provide broad guidance allowing virtual currency to count as qualifying income for standard agency loans.
“Mortgage lending treats digital assets as invisible, even though they are real assets,” Kate Amor, EVP and head of enterprise products at Rate, said in a statement. “RateFi changes that. We built this product to apply common-sense underwriting practices to modern financial realities, allowing eligible borrowers to use cryptocurrencies without being sold, without gimmicks, and without deviating from established lending standards.”
Amor continued that RateFi represents the first step in a broader digital asset financing strategy that the company plans to expand over time.
Rate President Shant Vanossian emphasized that the product will run within Rate’s existing underwriting and pricing system, rather than creating a separate cryptocurrency lending channel.
“Cryptocurrency lending has been making a lot of headlines,” Vanossian said. “But this business is about closing loans consistently, compliantly and at scale.”
Responding to the increase in crypto assets
More than 10 percent of Americans own digital assets, with some maintaining six- and seven-figure portfolios, according to industry research cited by Lehto. As digital assets expand, lenders are beginning to accommodate borrowers who don’t want to liquidate long-term holdings to qualify for a mortgage.
Historically, most lenders have required borrowers to convert cryptocurrencies into cash before they can count towards mortgage qualification. This process can trigger capital gains taxes, lock in losses during market downturns, and reduce exposure to assets that the borrower believes will appreciate in value.
RateFi seeks to reduce that friction by recognizing verified digital holdings as part of a borrower’s financial profile without requiring full liquidation.
This product is not without precedent. Other lenders, including Newrez, have introduced programs that allow them to incorporate cryptocurrencies into their eligibility requirements, but most are still limited to non-QM or portfolio channels rather than loans through compliant institutions.
Why non-QM matters
Non-QM designation is important.
Lenders offering these programs must operate without following guidelines, as government-backed companies do not widely accept virtual currencies as qualifying income. Non-QM loans allow for more flexible underwriting, but are typically financed through the private capital markets rather than being sold to the GSEs.
Although this structure is limited in size compared to agency financing, it is also a testing ground for innovation.
In Rate’s case, this strategy appears to be incremental rather than destructive.
Borrowers still make down payments in dollars. Loans are underwritten using a traditional risk framework. Virtual currencies are primarily treated as reserves or side income rather than as a new means of payment.
Why lenders are wary of stablecoins
RateFi eligibility includes certain stablecoins, which are digital assets designed to maintain a one-to-one value with the U.S. dollar. Stablecoins like USDC and USDT aim to reduce volatility compared to assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Still, lenders remain cautious.
Stablecoins can become “unpegged” during periods of market stress. Liquidity depends on the issuer’s reserves and token redemption mechanism, and exchanges may halt withdrawals. Regulatory oversight of digital assets continues to evolve at both the federal and state levels.
Mortgage underwriting also requires clear documentation of funding sources and asset seasonings. Blockchain-based holdings may introduce additional verification steps, such as verifying wallet ownership, verifying exchange accounts, and verifying transaction history.
These realities help explain why programs like RateFi require you to convert your down payment and closing cost funds into USD before closing.
What this means for agents and brokers
For now, RateFi appears to be targeting a specific demographic of borrowers: heavy users of cryptocurrencies, the self-employed, or non-traditional applicants who may not fit well with agency underwriting requirements.
But the symbolic meaning may be even greater.
As digital assets penetrate deeper into mainstream finance, and as younger crypto-forward buyers enter their peak home buying years, financial institutions are under increasing pressure to modernize balance sheet analysis built around W-2 income and brokered statements.
The bigger strategic question is whether products like RateFi will remain niche products within non-QM channels, or be an early step toward a broader normalization of digital assets in housing finance.
Any meaningful expansion could require clearer guidance from federal regulators or, ultimately, approval by the GSEs. Until then, cryptocurrency recognition programs will remain primarily within portfolio and private market structures.
For agents and brokers, the immediate impact may be limited, but it’s worth noting.
Buyers with large holdings of digital assets may have more options to qualify without rebuilding their portfolios. At the same time, these loans are still specialized and subject to more rigorous documentation and pricing than traditional mortgages.
For Rate, there is a growing class of borrowers who want to build real estate assets without relinquishing their positions in digital assets, and we believe that providing a compliant bridge between these two worlds will create both competitive differentiation and new lending volume.
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