Brelion, a real estate crowdfunding website, is allowing investors to use bitcoin to invest in real estate, making it the first company to offer such an investment option, according to the company.
Brelion vets projects from small to mid-sized renovation companies. Investors can create an account, undergo accreditation, explore pre-vetted investment opportunities and pledge an investment. Minimum investment can be as low as $1,000.
First Property Purchased
The first property is a four bedroom, 1.5 bath residence bought for approximately 30.83 XBT (bitcoin/U.S. dollar), with renovations estimated at 65.49 XBT. The project manager expects the property to appraise for about 120.21 XBT and to be refinanced to return the equity invested.
Brelion’s goal is to remove barriers to real estate investment by taking it out of the hands of banks, major funds and giant corporations. By using the crowdfunding concept popularized by sites like Indiegogo and Kickstarter, Brelion effectively gives individual accredited investors access to alternative investment options, as well as the chance to individually select projects. This will give mid-sized and small renovation firms access to capital without having to deal with traditional financing.
Making Investing Easier
Vadim Kleyner, Brelion founder, an early bitcoin adopter, believes opening Brelion to investments in the form of bitcoin supports his mission to make investing more accessible.
“At Brelion, we believe investing should be simple and profitable for everyone involved,” said Kleyner. “I believe this currency has major potential and there are not yet enough options for people that use it to be able to invest it and gain returns rather than having their money sit in a virtual wallet. So I decided to open our projects to Bitcoin investment, starting with our pilot property.”
Kleyner brings more than 20 years of IT experience and a decade of real estate experience. As CTO of Costupdate, he oversaw the deployment of a “just in time” B2C logistics platform synthesizing the most efficient delivery paths for 1 million products from sources worldwide. In 2015, he sold his $100 million asset under management real estate company to a partner of Keller Williams Realty, a global realty companies.
Security Protocols
Brelion’s website uses several layers of data encryption and software security protocols, including SSL 256-bit certificate, which is hosted in Microsoft Azure Cloud. Brelion has put policies in place to prevent money laundering and ensure anti-money laundering compliance. Brelion is also using Thomson Reuters, a third party screening service, to screen accredited investors.
“I invested in Brelion because I know and trust its founders and because I strongly believe in its platform and its business model,” said Alex Gertsburg, an investor.
“I’m also drawn to the disruptive innovation that is instilled in it,” Gertsburg continued. “The fact that the company puts its own money alongside that of its investors – i.e., puts its money where its mouth is – is totally consistent with the way its leaders think and act. I’m glad I invested. It’s been smooth sailing so far and I happily deposit my Brelion interest check every month.”
Featured image from Shutterstock.
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