Blockchain Lender Figure Experiences โDramatic โฃPrice Swing in Tokenized Home Equity Loans
EDINBURGH – A token representing $13โข billionโ inโฃ homeโข equity linesโข of credit (HELOCs) issued by blockchain lender Figure experienced a meaningful price fluctuation this week, highlightingโ concerns about liquidity and transparency in the โemerging marketโค of tokenized real-worldโ assetsโ (RWAs).
Figure โขutilizes the Provenance blockchain too record and issue itsโ loans, with its HELOC offering being โขits most popular product. the โcompany asserts that tokenizing these loans reduces โcosts and boosts โliquidity and efficiency,โค allowing access to markets traditionally considered illiquid.โ โข”By taking historically illiquid assets – such as loans – and putting these assets and their performance history โฃonchain, blockchain can bring liquidity to markets thatโค have never had such,” said Mike Cagney,โฃ Figure’s co-founderโฃ and executive chairman, in a September letter.
However, trading data reveals a stark contrast to โฃFigure’sโค claims. According to Figure Markets, an exchange that merged with Figureโค in July, onlyโ $1,516 worth of theโข $13 billion Figure HELOC token traded hands in the last 24 hours. This exceptionally low liquidity raisesโฃ the riskโ of significant โฃprice swings with even modest trading activity, while comparable assets typically see hundreds ofโฃ millions of dollars in daily volume.
Concerns extend beyond liquidity. 0xngmi, head of โcrypto data platform DefiLlama, questioned the โขverifiability โof Figure’s reported $13 billion in originated loans in a September post, stating, “The โขvast majority of [sic] โtheir loans is โคdone in fiat,โ and we could barelyโ find any onchainโ payments.”
The incident occurs as the RWA โขmarket gains traction, currently valued at $18 โbillion and projected to reach $19 trillion by 2033, according to DefiLlama and aโ Ripple/Boston Consulting Group prediction.
