A major breakthrough has just arrived for Bitcoin and the crypto industry from one of the most influential financial regulatory bodies in the United States. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), which oversees the country’s largest mortgage liquidity providers, has issued a directive that could change how digital assets are viewed.  Under this directive, mortgage liquidity providers have been officially ordered to begin preparations for considering cryptocurrencies as part of a borrower’s asset portfolio during mortgage evaluations. Crypto As Mortgage-Eligible Asset In a recent post on the social media platform X, FHFA Director Bill Pulte issued a directive instructing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to prepare proposals that allow homebuyers to count cryptocurrency holdings held on US-regulated exchanges as part of their asset reserves for mortgage applications without converting them into dollars. Crypto assets have always been excluded from mortgage risk assessments unless converted to U.S. dollars before closing. However, this recent move breaks that barrier. This policy shift aligns with former President Donald Trump’s campaigns to establish the United States as the crypto capital of the world. Pulte, who was recently sworn in as the 5th Director of U.S. Federal Housing FHFA in March 2025, is now part of those taking steps to make this vision a reality.  According to the order, both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac must also factor in market volatility and enforce strong risk-based adjustments before implementing the new assessment method. Fannie and Freddie are government-sponsored enterprises that do not issue mortgages themselves but play an important role in the housing market by purchasing home loans on the secondary market and setting the criteria for the loans they are willing to acquire. Bitcoin To Benefit The Most, But Where Does XRP Stand? Bitcoin is going to benefit the most from this policy update. Being the largest and most widely held cryptocurrency, Bitcoin has long been considered the digital gold standard, which makes it a natural candidate for institutional recognition.  Its established presence on U.S.-regulated exchanges and deep liquidity profile through Spot Bitcoin ETFs tick nearly every box laid out in the FHFA’s directive. However, the decision raises an important question for XRP holders as to whether the same regulation will be extended to XRP. Unlike Bitcoin, XRP has had a complicated history with regulatory agencies in the US, most notably the SEC. Although recent legal clarity around XRP has allowed the crypto to resume trading on major US-based exchanges, it isn’t really certain whether Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be quick to include it under this new directive. Nonetheless, the FHFA’s directive doesn’t specify eligible tokens. It simply refers to cryptocurrencies held on US-regulated exchanges. As such, the directive could be quick to include US-based cryptocurrencies like XRP and Ethereum alongside Bitcoin. Other countries are already far ahead with XRP in real estate. In Japan, for instance, Open House Group allows XRP payments for property purchases in cities such as Tokyo and Osaka. Dubai is also using the XRP Ledger to tokenize real estate.

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FHFA Orders to Recognize Bitcoin And Other Cryptos in Mortgage Assessments Today, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to include Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in their mortgage risk assessments.This historic policy shift signals the US government’s growing recognition of digital assets in mainstream financial systems. After significant studying, and in keeping with President Trump’s vision to make the United States the crypto capital of the world, today I ordered the Great Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to prepare their businesses to count cryptocurrency as an asset for a mortgage.

SO ORDERED pic.twitter.com/Tg9ReJQXC3— Pulte (@pulte) June 25, 2025 “After significant studying, and in keeping with President Trump’s vision to make the United States the crypto capital of the world, today I ordered the Great Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to prepare their businesses to count cryptocurrency as an asset for a mortgage,” stated the Director of the U.S. Federal Housing FHFA William J. Pulte on X. Until now, Bitcoin has not typically been considered in the mortgage risk assessment process unless it was first converted into US dollars. Under the new directive, however, the FHFA acknowledges that digital assets, when properly documented, can serve as valid indicators of a borrower’s financial reserves. The directive instructs Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to develop proposals for incorporating Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies into single-family loan assessments without requiring conversion to cash. Only Bitcoin and other crypto assets stored on US regulated centralized exchanges and compliant with applicable laws will be considered. The FHFA believes this move will help the Enterprises assess a broader range of borrower assets and better support sustainable homeownership for creditworthy borrowers, especially those with wealth held outside traditional banking systems. Additionally, the Enterprises are required to factor in the volatility of Bitcoin and other crypto markets by including appropriate risk mitigants in their assessments. These may include internal adjustments for price fluctuations and limits on the proportion of reserves held in Bitcoin and other crypto. “Today is a historic day in the cryptocurrency industry and the mortgage industry, whereby Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are now positioned to involve Cryptocurrencies in Mortgages,” said on X Pulte. “Thank you President Trump for making the USA the crypto capital of the world!” This post FHFA Orders to Recognize Bitcoin And Other Cryptos in Mortgage Assessments first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine and is written by Oscar Zarraga Perez.