Wall Street's embrace of blockchain is shifting from trading desks and ETF products to the core infrastructure of the financial system. Citi, Mastercard, Visa and multiple top US banks are accelerating tests and deployments of stablecoin settlement and tokenized assets, covering payment networks, deposit systems, private markets and custody services.
Payments and Deposits: Stablecoin Settlement Takes Center Stage
Mastercard announced it will add stablecoin settlement options for issuers and payment acquirers by June 2026. Visa is collaborating with Brale to test private stablecoin settlement on the Canton Network, a privacy-focused blockchain infrastructure designed for institutional use. On the banking side, JPMorgan Chase, Citi, Bank of America, Wells Fargo and The Clearing House are developing a tokenized deposit network led by banks, targeting a first-half 2027 launch. In retail banking, SoFi has launched its SoFiUSD stablecoin on its consumer banking platform and named Bullish as its first centralized exchange partner, aiming to bridge the gap between crypto assets and traditional finance. CoinMarketCap's analysis notes that Wall Street has entered a new phase in institutional crypto adoption: the focus is moving from trading and ETF products to the foundational infrastructure of the financial system.
Tokenization Expands into Private Markets and Investment Funds
Citi rolled out its Digital Depositary Receipts solution in June for private company shares, offering investors a channel into pre-IPO companies. BlackRock, after launching its first tokenized money market fund BUIDL in 2024, filed to expand its offerings in this space. Ondo Finance, J.P. Morgan's Kinexys division, Mastercard and Ripple completed a pilot in May that allowed redemption of tokenized US Treasury funds through blockchain infrastructure. Stock tokenization is also gaining ground: Coinbase plans to offer tokenized US equities to clients outside the US, while Kraken's parent company Payward offers tokenized IPO access via its xStocks platform.
Infrastructure and Custody: DTCC Leads, StanChart Enters
DTCC announced in May it had launched a tokenization service involving more than 50 financial firms, with limited production operations for select tokenized real-world assets starting in July and a broader rollout in October. In custody, Standard Chartered announced in May it would acquire the crypto custody business of Zodia Custody and integrate it into its own infrastructure to deepen digital asset services. A report by Ripple in collaboration with Quinlan & Associates in February emphasized that digital asset custody services form the foundational layer for all digital asset use cases in financial institutions. Recent developments show blockchain being increasingly integrated into daily operations of major financial institutions, including money transfer, securities issuance and transaction settlement.