UWM Holdings Corporation, the parent of United Wholesale Mortgage, announced a $2.05 billion strategic capital partnership with Oaktree Capital Management and the Ishbia family’s newly formed investment vehicle, SFS Group Capital, LLC, according to a company announcement. The move comes as the nation’s largest mortgage lender by volume reported a $451.9 million net loss for the second quarter.
“We’re taking decisive action to make UWM stronger, more liquid and better positioned to win,” said Mat Ishbia, UWM’s chairman, president and chief executive. He said the partnership provides “even more firepower to sustain that offense.”
Deal structure
The capital partnership consists of $1.65 billion in preferred equity funding at closing, plus a planned $400 million rights offering to Class A shareholders with a record date of Oct. 2, 2026 and an expiration of Nov. 12, 2026. The rights offering’s subscription terms are set at the greater of $2.00 per share or 85% of the 10-day volume-weighted average price measured Oct. 27 through Nov. 9, 2026. Investors also received warrants intended to align their returns with UWM’s long-term performance, and Oaktree secured board representation, including nomination rights for one additional independent director.
Nick Basso, Oaktree’s co-head of North America, said the firm’s commitment reflects confidence in “UWM’s differentiated platform, market leadership and long-term growth potential,” adding that “Mat has built an exceptional business.”
UWM said proceeds will primarily go toward repaying existing debt and mortgage-servicing-rights financing facilities, strengthening its equity base and liquidity, and continuing investment in technology, artificial intelligence and its broker channel as the mortgage market recovers. The company also suspended its quarterly common dividend, saying it will prioritize debt reduction and balance-sheet strength, with plans to opportunistically pay down the new preferred equity using future earnings.
A costly quarter
The capital raise follows a difficult quarter for UWM. The company reported second-quarter total revenue of $888.0 million, a net loss of $451.9 million, and adjusted EBITDA of $185.9 million, even as loan origination volume held up at $39.7 billion for the quarter. The loss was driven largely by a hedge-related charge tied to UWM’s unsuccessful bid to acquire Two Harbors Investment Corp., a real estate investment trust that UWM had targeted for a merger earlier this year.
That deal ultimately went to a competitor: Two Harbors instead agreed to be acquired by CrossCountry Mortgage, which raised its offer to $11.30 a share after displacing UWM’s original merger agreement. CrossCountry paid UWM a $25.4 million termination fee as part of that shift, but the broader hedging position UWM had built around its Two Harbors pursuit appears to have produced the outsized loss now disclosed in its second-quarter results.
UWM has also been engaged in unrelated litigation this year: the company called a $100 million breach-of-contract lawsuit from Rocket Mortgage “baseless” after Rocket alleged UWM violated a non-solicitation covenant tied to mortgage-servicing rights that Mr. Cooper, since acquired by Rocket, purchased from UWM in 2024.
What it means
The $2.05 billion infusion is one of the largest capital raises in the wholesale mortgage industry this year and signals that UWM’s leadership and its outside investors are treating the Q2 loss as a balance-sheet event to be fortified against, rather than a signal to retreat. The dividend suspension is a concrete sign of that shift in priorities: UWM is choosing to direct cash toward debt reduction rather than shareholder payouts for the foreseeable future.
For the broader mortgage industry, the deal is a reminder that even the largest wholesale originators remain exposed to hedging risk tied to M&A activity, and that outside capital, including from major alternative-asset managers like Oaktree, is still available to back established platforms through a rocky quarter. Whether the capital partnership restores investor confidence in UWM’s stock, which has traded under pressure since the loss was disclosed, will depend on how quickly the company can demonstrate the debt reduction and liquidity improvements it says the new capital will fund.
