Framework Ventures Buys 10% of Better for ₱2.59 billion ($45 million)
Crypto VC firm Framework Ventures paid ₱2.59 billion ($45 million) for a 10% equity stake in mortgage lender Better, which plans to issue mortgage-tied tokens to generate yield within Sky's stablecoin ecosystem.
Key Takeaway
Better's DeFi pivot aims to cut mortgage costs through tokenization, but investors aren't buying it yet.
Framework Ventures co-founder Vance Spencer said real-world assets are one of the most important frontiers in decentralized finance, and government-backed conforming mortgages are one of the largest real-world asset classes in the world.
Better will issue mortgage-tied tokens designed to generate yield within Sky's stablecoin ecosystem. Sky was formerly known as MakerDAO before its rebrand.
Better CEO Vishal Garg explained the crypto push by pointing to lower fees and operating costs. He said the company can take out multiple layers of intermediation through DeFi integration. If Better can finance at a much lower cost than competitors in the mortgage market, it can offer consumers a much cheaper mortgage than anybody else.
The deal comes as Better's stock has taken a beating this year. Shares closed at ₱1,557 ($27) on Monday when the Framework partnership was announced, down 17% year-to-date. That's a sharp drop from late October when the stock peaked above ₱4,959 ($86), and fell another 6% on the announcement day.
Better plans to launch a "Home Token" initially for accredited investors only, with retail expansion planned later. Garg said the company is figuring out how to get the token in the hands of consumers, though he didn't specify a timeline.
This article was written based on reporting from Cointelegraph.
