MPA hears from an expert on the subject…
At just 24 years old, Eloisa Marchesoni (pictured) has become a trusted advisor on cryptocurrency. In a recent interview with Mortgage Professional America, she expressed bullishness in the cutting-edge currency, envisioning its widespread use across the breadth of industries – including the mortgage field.
The precocious pundit has been advising on cryptocurrency since 2018. Asked why she is so bullish on crypto, she responded: “The power of the underlying technology, blockchain, and the growing need of the human being to finally re-gain self-sovereignty. It is such a coincidence that blockchain fits that need just right, and right now, when the institutions are proving to be the greatest enemies of the individual rights.”
The dynamics of cryptocurrency she likes the most are peer-to-peer, self-sovereignty; pseudo- and/or anonymity; transparency when the blockchain is there; social mobility; and equality.
“It’s going to be adopted by the masses and added to the mainstream,” she told MPA. “I’m speaking of a world when we’ll all be using cryptowallets daily.”
Read more: Cryptocurrency mortgage lending – time to get onboard?
And yet, the factors that lead to its wider adoption are still guided by more mainstream bellwethers, she added. “The rise in value sometimes is not really tied to the rise in mainstream adoption,” she said. “It’s driven by the same factors we see on Wall Street.”
For now, she noted, most investors are turning to cold storage for fear of a potential recession. “We’re all expecting a crash like what happened in 2008,” she said. “I agree it’s going to come pretty soon, and there will be a drop in cryptocurrency pretty soon. That’s why we’re switching to cold storage,” the New York City-based adviser said. Another fear for the moment is the ability of some governments to block withdrawals, as is happening as a result of the Russian war with Ukraine, she said.
“While that is going down, the adoption rate will still be positive,” she added. “Even negative news benefits the market because a lot of people will become more educated.”
Once those exigencies are past, however, she envisions a time of widespread adoption in the not-too-distant future. “I’m talking about the banks and big tech companies integrating crypto,” she said. “Apple Pay will have crypto wallets. Bitcoin to me,” she added, “is like electronic gold.”
Living in the Trump Tower, Marchesoni has become something of a celebrity in the world of crypto. Born in the US, she spent her formative years in Italy. The Europeans, she noted, are more easily convinced on the crypto market of the future, and she acknowledged a greater degree of difficulty in converting many in the US.
Some companies have already made strides into cryptocurrency. Luxembourg-based Altisource Portfolio Solutions SA recently struck an agreement with a cryptocurrency payment and conversion service to facilitate the purchase of homes with digital currency.
Read next: United Wholesale Mortgage’s Mat Ishbia to test water with cryptocurrency
Michael Jansta, chief marketing officer for Altisource, told MPA the agreement with ForumPay makes it easier to buy real estate with cryptocurrency, despite the currency’s volatility. “It’s kind of like buying gold from a dealer during the day while it’s fluctuating. They lock the exchange rate for a couple of minutes, and you put in your credit card or your bank transfer information and you can buy gold. ForumPay does the same thing with cryptocurrency.”
He provided an accessible example related to the mortgage industry: “So if you want to buy a house and your title company sends you a total that you’re supposed to tender – whether that’s your down payment amount on a finance deal or you’re paying in full as a cash buyer – there is a specific dollar amount that you need in funds to close escrow. ForumPay enables you to pay using bitcoin or another cryptocurrency. You press the button when you’re ready to pay and they lock what your exchange rate is going to be.”
For its part, United Wholesale Mortgage in late 2021 announced it would start accepting cryptocurrency as payment. Company CEO Mat Ishbia initially announced that UWM would begin allowing the use of digital currencies in mortgage transactions during the company’s Q2 earnings in August 2021.
