Can you use cryptocurrency to purchase real estate in Europe?

How Crypto is Impacting Real Estate in Europe

Cryptocurrencies are making waves in the European real estate market as more and more people are considering using digital currencies to purchase property. In May 2022, an apartment in a Portuguese town sold for 3 Bitcoin (BTC), with no conversion into fiat currency. At the time of the sale, the value of 3 BTC stood at around €110,000. This transaction was deemed a "historic milestone" and was the first of its kind in the country.

The real estate market is currently changing to accommodate a new generation of investors who choose to make payments using cryptocurrency, and in 2023, there are many countries (in Europe and further afield) that support the buying and selling of real estate through cryptocurrency. 

With this in mind, XEROF is on a mission to make buying and selling real estate as secure and straightforward as possible. In this piece, we will be looking at how crypto is impacting real estate in Europe today and how XEROF is staying ahead of the curve in order to offer the best service to its clients.

How Crypto & Blockchain are Impacting Real Estate in Europe

Below is a summary of how the adoption of blockchain & cryptocurrency payments in Europe is impacting the real estate market.

Fast Asset Liquidation And Land Title Transfer

It has always been a challenge for investors to liquidate their assets in a timely manner in order to reinvest or diversify their portfolios. If investors choose to do this through the blockchain ledger, it will be much easier for them to sell their holdings. Just adding assets to the ledger has the potential to greatly simplify the liquidation process.

Additionally, blockchain tech makes the transfer of titles more straightforward as smart contracts help to cut out intermediaries and speed up the process.

No More Intermediaries

One of the distinctive features of the real estate industry is escrow. To protect all parties involved in the transaction, escrow companies act as impartial third parties. They take care of all the money and documentation until the deal closes. Blockchain technology could speed up real estate transactions and reduce costs by eliminating the need for this process altogether.

Because blockchain technology is peer-to-peer, every cryptocurrency transaction is recorded instantly on each user's computer. As a result, multiple immutable copies of the same records are created and published.

Moreover, since cryptocurrencies provide automatically updated records, all parties involved are kept informed in real-time. Each party can track the progress of their transaction from anywhere in the world.

Fractional Investing Will Be More Accessible

As cryptocurrencies become more popular in the real estate market, so will fractional investment opportunities. High-value purchases can lower the barrier to entry for investors who choose to combine their resources to purchase a property.

For traditional micro-investments, the cost of transferring funds is a disadvantage. Multiple smaller transactions lead to an increase in transaction costs. However, with cryptocurrencies, these costs are reduced to almost zero.

Impact on Securitization

The underwriting of loans continues to be non-standardized and relies on paper records. In order to avoid double pledging assets, the structuring of collateral must be very carefully defined in a contract. Furthermore, delays in the settlement are frequently experienced during cash reconciliations which often affects investor cash flow.

Blockchain provides banking organizations with real-time payment processing, immutable transaction history, a single version of validated information, and secure data exchange. A loan or mortgage can be stored digitally and contain relevant information, including property rights and loan payment history, to facilitate future servicing decisions.

How is XEROF Helping Crypto Holders Enter the Real Estate Market?

XEROF recently partnered with CCA Law for the "Crypto, Law & Real Estate in Lisbon" event that was held in Lisbon on Tuesday, February 28th, 2023. The conference focused on how blockchain technology will impact the real estate industry in 2023, as well as lawyers, accountants, investors, and others. There was also a post-conference discussion where attendees could ask questions and exchange their thoughts.

In addition, XEROF and the University of Nicosia will be partnering for the "Crypto, Law & Real Estate in Cyprus" event on March 3rd, 2023, at the University of Nicosia.

Marc Taverner, XEROF's COO, is one of the keynote speakers at this event and will be discussing how XEROF services can facilitate real estate purchases with crypto in Cyprus. He will also be moderating a discussion panel later at the event.

XEROF will continue to partner with different organizations to highlight the impact blockchain technology is having on real estate, luxury goods, and more. If you are interested in partnering with XEROF, please do not hesitate to contact us.

XEROF will also be launching a special Real Estate Partner Program very soon. This program will allow real estate agencies to bundle their real estate business and crypto payments, which will, in turn, increase revenue and encourage customer loyalty. If you would like to be the first to learn more about this exciting initiative, please contact us here.

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@ All rights reserved. FE Swiss Financial AG trading as Xerof &  is a registered Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) supervised by the self-regulatory organisation (SRO) VQF for AML compliance. FE Swiss Financial AG is fully compliant with Swiss regulation in the field of AML/CFT from Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority FINMA. VQF SRO Membership Nr. 100954.All FE Swiss Financial AG dba XEROF services shall be governed by its General Terms and Conditions of Service, including, inter alia, a limitation of liability and a nomination of competent jurisdiction. These General Terms and Conditions may be consulted via our Website. FE Swiss Financial AG does not provide financial advice and nothing in our communications should be construed as financial advice.