SEC filing: Figure, which uses blockchain to provide loans and is led by Mike Cagney, ex-CEO of SoFi, plans to raise $250M via a SPAC
Context & Ripple Effects
Figure has been on a steady funding climb since its 2018 launch: Cagney, who resigned as SoFi CEO amid harassment allegations, raised $50M to build blockchain-based home-equity lending, then $65M in 2019 and a $103M Series C at a $1.2B valuation that same year.
By May 2021 the company had closed a $200M round at a $3.2B valuation — and this SEC filing shows it chose a SPAC merger over a traditional IPO to reach public markets. The blockchain-lending thesis has since widened beyond mortgages, with Figure later seeking regulator approval for an interest-bearing stablecoin.
First-order effects
- A successful $250M SPAC raise hands Figure public-market capital without an IPO roadshow, converting its $3.2B private valuation into a listed security and giving Cagney a public-company platform three years after his SoFi exit.
Second-order effects
- A listed blockchain lender creates a public comparable for rival crypto-fintech startups, pressuring them to either pursue their own SPAC mergers or defend private valuations against a marked-to-market benchmark.
Third-order effects
- If blockchain originators keep reaching public markets ahead of proven loan performance, the SEC's parallel moves on token offerings and crypto rules will increasingly collide with public-company disclosure duties — making Figure's filings a test case for how regulated crypto-lending disclosures are treated.
The trend: Fintech startups are using SPACs as a fast track to public markets, with blockchain lenders like Figure trading private valuations for listings before their lending models mature.