Beeline Financial announced Tuesday it is exiting its unusual partnership with an Oregon-based publicly traded distillery, a little less than a year after the two companies announced plans to merge.
The digital mortgage lender said it will instead focus on expanding its offerings in home finance, as it expects the housing market to recover next year.
As part of the exit, Beeline disposed of its majority stake
The deal officially closed July 25, when Beeline's common stock in Bridgetown was transferred to Geoffrey Gwin, the CEO of Bridgetown, according to a company press release.
Chris Moe, chief financial officer of Beeline, said the Providence, Rhode Island-based company is betting on a stabilization in the mortgage lending market in 2026 as a key reason for leaving the partnership.
"Beeline continues to make moves designed to position itself to capitalize on its new products, an emerging platform and in a market that is expected to recover in 2026," said Moe in a statement. "We are now in a position to exclusively focus on our business and Bridgetown can move its business forward as a private company allowing itself to focus on its unique Oregon-themed brands."
Fannie Mae's July housing outlook projects mortgage interest rates will end 2025 at
As part of the transaction, Beeline also funded a $75,000 one-year senior secured term loan to Bridgetown and, in exchange, received a secured promissory note with a principal amount of $100,000, the company said.
Gwin stated there was no bad blood over the deal and that he looks forward to "the next chapter for Bridgetown Spirits."
"I want to thank Chris Moe, CFO, and Nick Liuzza, CEO for driving this transaction from the Beeline side. We view the transaction as a win for both sides," said the head of the spirits firm.
When the merger was first announced in 2024, the two companies said Bridgetown would gain access to Beeline's proprietary AI-powered sales tools, while Beeline would receive a financial cushion of at least $2 million. It's unclear whether Bridgetown will retain access to those tools going forward.
During the partnership, Beeline continued to roll out new products in the mortgage space. In January, the company launched a new division, Beeline Labs, to offer business-to-business software for the mortgage industry. The expansion into software-as-a-service marked a shift toward diversifying revenue beyond lending, the company said.
The digital mortgage lender was also one of the
Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc., a financial services and investment firm, issued a "buy" rating for Beeline Holdings with a $4.50 price target, signaling it believes the stock has strong upside potential. The closing price on July 28 was $2.14, Beeline said in its release.
