Major US Banks Mulling Joint Stablecoin Venture: Report

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Are Banks Finally Joining the Crypto Party? 🎉💸

So, it turns out that America’s biggest banks—yes, the ones that charge you for breathing—are having a little chit-chat about creating a joint stablecoin. You know, just to keep up with the cool kids in the crypto industry. According to the Wall Street Journal (because who doesn’t love a good gossip?), JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and their pals are in the early stages of this oh-so-innovative venture. How very 2023 of them! 🙄

Apparently, they’re also chatting with bank-owned payment companies like Zelle’s Early Warning Services. Because nothing says “trustworthy” like a bunch of banks trying to play tech startup.

But hold your horses! This whole stablecoin dream is still in the “let’s brainstorm over coffee” phase, hinging on some upcoming legislation and whether anyone actually wants it. Spoiler alert: they probably don’t. ☕️

EVERYONE WANTS A PIECE OF THE PIE.

JP MORGAN, WELLS FARGO, AND CITI BANK WANT TO LAUNCH THEIR OWN U.S. BANK-BACKED STABLECOIN.

THIS COULD BE GREAT FOR ADOPTION.

HORRIBLE FOR DECENTRALIZATION.

BUT CRYPTO ISN’T GOING ANYWHERE.

— Kyle Chassé / DD (@kyle_chasse) May 23, 2025

Banks Playing Catchup

Just days ago, the US Congress decided to move along some key stablecoin legislation. On May 20, the GENIUS Act (yes, they really named it that) passed in the Senate. Because nothing screams “innovation” like a bunch of politicians trying to understand blockchain.

American banks are sweating bullets, fearing that under President Trump, stablecoins might actually become popular and threaten their precious deposits and profits. I mean, who needs competition, right? 😅

In March, the Trump family’s DeFi platform World Liberty Financial announced it would launch a stablecoin. So, the banks are now scrambling to catch up after two years of regulatory crackdowns. Talk about a late arrival to the party!

They also think stablecoins could speed up boring transactions like cross-border payments, which currently take longer than a snail on a treadmill. 🐌

“The possibility of Wall Street’s traditional powers teaming up to issue their own stablecoin marks the latest sign that mainstream and crypto finance are inching closer together,” the WSJ stated.

A Threat to Stablecoin Issuers?

BitMEX founder Arthur Hayes hinted that this could spell doom for crypto stablecoin issuers like Circle. Because who doesn’t love a good drama?

Bye bye Circle. Thanks for playing.

— Arthur Hayes (@CryptoHayes) May 23, 2025

But let’s be real: it’s unlikely that US banks will actually compete with global stablecoins that are available to everyone. Users will probably need a US bank account, complete with all the delightful restrictions that come with it. Yay! 🙌

Meanwhile, the crypto stablecoin market is currently worth a whopping $248 billion, which is about 7% of the entire crypto market. Earlier this month, stablecoin liquidity hit a record high of $220 billion, according to CryptoPotato. Because who doesn’t love potatoes and crypto?

In early May, US Treasury researchers predicted that the stablecoin market cap could increase more than 8x, potentially reaching about $2 trillion by 2028. So, buckle up, folks! 🚀

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2025-05-23 09:57