Figure and the Crypto Mullet Strategy

Figure, a crypto-adjacent lender, has filed an S-1 for an IPO, and the article argues its business is real but its blockchain pitch is partly a marketing choice. The article says Figure Exchange, launched in August 2024, facilitated over $1 billion in volume, of which $299 million was in the six months ended June 30, 2025, and that Figure did not generate revenue from the exchange in that period. Its main revenue comes from originating home equity lines of credit, which it sells to other lenders, and it grows largely by white-labeling its product for other originators.