In brief
- SoFi introduced a stablecoin with “bank-grade oversight.”
- The token will debut on Ethereum first.
- The bank’s members can trade 30 cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, ETH, and Solana.
Financial services firm SoFi Technologies said on Thursday that it will soon offer its own stablecoin, following the company’s re-entry into crypto last month.
The stablecoin, dubbed SoFiUSD, will be issued by SoFi Bank, positioning the firm as an infrastructure provider for banks and fintechs, according to a press release.
SoFi described itself as among the first national banks to issue a stablecoin on a public, permissionless blockchain. Last week, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency granted conditional approval for national banking charters to several stablecoin issuers.
SoFi didn’t say which networks its stablecoin could ultimately be issued on, but the company told Decrypt that the token will debut first on Ethereum. The plan is to expand the token to multiple blockchains over time to spur global availability, SoFi added.
“We’re using the infrastructure we’ve built over the last decade and applying it to real-world challenges in financial services,” SoFi CEO Anthony Noto said in a statement. “Companies today struggle with slow settlement, fragmented providers, and unverified reserve models.”
SoFi said it would be able to share “an attractive yield” with SoFiUSD holders and partners, while parking cash reserves within its account at the Federal Reserve. For “immediate redemption capability,” SoFi said SoFiUSD is fully backed by cash.
Last month, SoFi began allowing members to purchase cryptocurrencies directly from checking and savings accounts. In total, SoFi said that its clients can now trade 30 different cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana.
The company said that SoFiUSD will serve a key role in its crypto trading business, but it can also be used by businesses looking for cheaper and faster ways to move funds. SoFi said it plans to use the stablecoin in areas such as remittances and payments.
SoFi said that its stablecoin infrastructure will allow companies to issue white-labeled stablecoins. Before a framework for stablecoins was passed this summer, some onlookers anticipated that regulation could unleash myriad branded stablecoins on the market.
SoFi shares changed hands around $25 on Thursday, according to Yahoo Finance. The company’s stock price has soared 75% over the past six months.
In January, Noto declared that SoFi would be “incredibly aggressive” with its crypto offerings as the regulatory picture evolved under President Donald Trump. Prior to that, the company had offered trading for 30 digital assets, but it shuttered that offering in 2023.
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