Second largest mortgage lender reverses Bitcoin plan
United Wholesale Mortgage will no longer accept cryptocurrency
The second-largest mortgage lender in the country – United Wholesale Mortgage -- is reversing course on its plans to accept cryptocurrency
Despite being the "first mortgage lender to successfully pilot this technology" over the past two months, UWM doesn't plan on continuing to offer cryptocurrency as a payment option due to its rising cost and volatility.
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| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UWMC | UWM HLDGS CORP | 6.16 | +0.14 | +2.24% |
"Due to the current combination of incremental costs and regulatory uncertainty in the Crypto space we’ve concluded we aren’t going to extend beyond a pilot at this time," CEO Mat Ishbia said in a statement Thursday.
As recent as August, Ishbia had discussed his plans to accept Bitcoin and other cryptocurrenices as payment as soon as the third quarter during an interview with Stuart Varney on "Varney & Co".
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At the time, Ishbia said UWM was not only going to accept Bitcoin, but was also looking into possibly accepting Ethereum and other cryptocurrencies as well.
Bitcoin (iStock / iStock)
UWM began to pilot the technology to see if it's a "faster, easier and cheaper solution."
The mortgage lender accepted its first-ever cryptocurrency mortgage payment in September, followed by five more cryptocurrency mortgage payments in October from borrowers.
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The transactions – a first not only for UWM but for the entire industry – were used as a "model to better assess scaling cryptocurrency payments for consumers," according to UWM.
Even though UWM isn't continuing with its prior plans, the company said that this "test-and-learn process" will "prepare UWM to make it available once cryptocurrency transactions become something that will propel the organization forward."
UWM also said that it will continue to monitor cryptocurrency, the use of blockchain technology and opportunities for future use.
FOX Business' Talia Kaplan contributed to this report.