Miami-based fintech Milo has closed $10 million in cryptocurrency mortgages since unveiling the product earlier this year, the company announced early Tuesday.
The lender’s 30-year crypto mortgage is designed to make it easy for investors to use their digital holdings to acquire homes in the U.S.
Through the crypto-lending program, Milo allows borrowers to pledge cryptocurrency through regulated custodians — crypto platforms such as Coinbase or Gemini — and thereby finance as much as 100 percent of the property purchase price, with a cap of $5 million.
“We have incredible momentum and see a fundamental need to help individuals diversify their wealth to generate real world yield through real estate,” said Josip Rupena, founder and CEO of Milo.
Milo’s 30-year crypto-mortgage requires no down-payment, other than pledging the cryptocurrency as collateral, and is available at an interest rate as low as 6.95%. That rate, however, can change, according to Milo. The interest rate is reviewed annually to assess the ratio of crypto assets pledged as security to the total loan amount.
“The higher the ratio is, the lower your rate will be,” according to Milo’s website. The lower the ratio, of course, the higher the rate adjustment will be for the crypto-mortgage.
Milo’s crypto-loan program, however, allows homebuyers to keep their cryptocurrency — Bitcoin, Ethereum and USD Coin all qualify for use as collateral — while acquiring property and potentially benefiting from price appreciation in both assets.
“Given the current state of the market, we’re extremely proud that we have not had any margin calls or negative counterparty exposure, all while continuing to originate mortgages,” Rupena said. “As a licensed and regulated entity, we take our responsibility seriously to ensure our clients’ crypto is safe and returned when requested.”
Milo also offers a tech-enabled non-crypto mortgage product that serves U.S. and foreign nationals who want to purchase a home in the U.S., or pursue refinancing. Milo, a licensed and insured direct lender, reports some $100 million in loans have been originated through its more traditional mortgage line — with applicants hailing from more than 90 countries, according to a news release announcing Milo’s crypto-mortgage milestone.
The company started rolling out its crypto-mortgage product in April of 2022 and has since added 20 employees, company representatives said, for a total of about 40 employees. Milo also has plans to soon introduce a crypto-mortgage refinancing product.
“The success of our crypto mortgage over the past few months serves as a testament to our ability to pioneer and create a unique solution for the crypto community,” Rupena said.
