Rate Unveils Ratefi, Enabling Crypto Assets For Mortgage Qualification

Chicago-based mortgage lender Rate announced Monday that it has launched RateFi, a product aimed at borrowers who hold cryptocurrency, allowing them to qualify for a mortgage without liquidating their digital assets.

The product is designed to bridge digital assets and traditional home financing. Available this month, the program enables qualified borrowers to use verified cryptocurrency as part of their income and asset qualification. Borrowers who use digital assets for a down payment or closing costs must still convert those funds to cash.

More than 10% of Americans hold digital assets, with some maintaining six- and seven-figure portfolios, according to Rate’s press release. But despite that growth, mortgage lenders have generally required borrowers to liquidate cryptocurrency holdings, potentially triggering tax consequences, or to use pledged-loan structures that can limit control over the assets.

RateFi is designed to allow borrowers to use verified, nonliquidated cryptocurrency as qualifying income and reserves within existing mortgage frameworks.

“Digital assets are real assets, yet mortgage lending has treated them as invisible,” Kate Amor, executive vice president and head of enterprise products at Rate, said in a statement. “RateFi changes that. We built this product to apply common-sense underwriting to a modern financial reality, allowing qualified borrowers to use their crypto without selling it, without gimmicks, and without stepping outside established lending standards. RateFi represents the first phase of a broader digital asset lending strategy the company plans to expand over time.

“As the definition of wealth evolves, lending needs to evolve with it. RateFi is the first step in Rate’s broader digital asset lending roadmap,” Amor added. “RateFi expands access responsibly to meet crypto-wealthy borrowers where they are today, while still maintaining the same disciplined credit standards that define our Rate portfolio product suite.”

The program operates within existing non-QM structures and applies standard anti-money laundering and know-your-customer verification processes, the company said.

“Crypto lending gets a lot of headlines,” said Shant Banosian, president of Rate. “But this business is about closing loans consistently, compliantly, and at scale. RateFi runs within our existing platform, providing the underwriting, pricing, and operational support our loan officers rely on every day. It gives them another way to say yes to qualified borrowers without adding complexity.

“Digital assets represent real wealth,” Banosian added. “RateFi expands who our loan officers can help and strengthens our ability to serve today’s borrower, without adding friction to the process.”

RateFi’s launch comes at a time when cryptocurrency is increasingly becoming accepted by lenders. Last month, Newfi Lending announced that it’s allowing real estate investors to use cryptocurrency assets to meet reserve requirements for debt-service-coverage ratio (DSCR) loans.

Newrez also recently announced that, starting in February, it would let borrowers use eligible cryptocurrency assets for mortgage qualification, without requiring liquidation, across its Smart Series loan product suite.

“The global crypto market has surged past $3 trillion, and an estimated 45% of Gen Z and Millennial investors — many of whom are future homebuyers — own crypto,” said Leslie Gillin, Newrez’s chief commercial officer.