SoFi’s Stablecoin Move Signals a New Phase for Regulated Crypto Finance

SoFi has crossed a regulatory and technological threshold by becoming the first U.S. national bank to launch a stablecoin directly on a public, permissionless blockchain. The new asset, SoFiUSD, is fully backed by U.S. dollars and marks a deliberate shift in how traditional banks may begin to interact with on-chain financial infrastructure.

Rather than positioning the stablecoin as a consumer novelty, SoFi is framing SoFiUSD as core financial plumbing. The bank’s broader ambition is to operate as a stablecoin infrastructure provider—enabling other banks, fintech firms, and enterprise platforms to move money faster, more cheaply, and with greater transparency than legacy settlement systems allow.

By issuing SoFiUSD on an open blockchain, SoFi removes many of the timing and cost constraints that dominate traditional payments. Partners can transfer funds continuously, settle transactions almost instantly, and do so at costs measured in fractions of a cent. This always-on settlement model allows institutions to manage liquidity in real time, rather than waiting for batch processing windows and reconciliation cycles.

The use cases extend well beyond crypto trading. While SoFiUSD will support settlements within SoFi’s own digital asset business, the company expects the token to be adopted by card networks, retailers, and enterprises that require constant settlement availability. For these players, the appeal lies not just in speed, but in predictability—knowing that funds are fully reserved, verifiable on-chain, and issued by a regulated national bank.

SoFiUSD is also being woven into SoFi’s broader payments strategy. Within SoFi Pay, the stablecoin will underpin international remittances and everyday point-of-sale transactions. For consumers and businesses in regions with unstable local currencies, SoFi envisions the stablecoin functioning as a secure, dollar-denominated store of value—potentially backing debit accounts or secured credit products.

This move builds on SoFi’s recent push deeper into digital assets. Just last month, the company became the first U.S. national bank to offer crypto trading services directly to consumers, allowing members to buy, sell, and hold nearly 30 cryptocurrencies. Together, these initiatives suggest SoFi is attempting to bridge the gap between regulated banking and open blockchain systems rather than treating crypto as a separate silo.

CEO Anthony Noto has framed the stablecoin launch as a response to systemic inefficiencies in modern finance. According to Noto, businesses today are constrained by slow settlement, fragmented intermediaries, and opaque reserve structures. By combining national bank oversight with a fully reserved, on-chain asset, SoFi believes it can offer partners a safer and more efficient alternative to both traditional rails and lightly regulated stablecoin models.

More broadly, SoFi’s entry into public-chain stablecoins may serve as a signal to the industry. As regulators scrutinize digital assets more closely, the line between banks and blockchain infrastructure is beginning to blur. If SoFiUSD proves viable at scale, it could accelerate a future where regulated institutions play a central role in on-chain finance—bringing stablecoins closer to the core of everyday payments rather than the edges of the crypto economy.

By Advik Gupta