- Twenty-one major banks, including Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, and Citi, are forming a company to issue a USD stablecoin targeting a first-half 2027 launch.
- The consortium has more than doubled from its initial 10-bank exploration in October 2025 and now spans five global regions.
- Circle shares fell roughly 6% Tuesday as investors reacted to the new bank-backed competition for USDC.
Twenty-one of the world’s largest financial institutions, including Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, and Citi, committed Tuesday to form a company that will issue a U.S. dollar stablecoin, according to a joint statement. The yet-unnamed company targets formation in the second half of 2026, with the stablecoin planned for market by the first half of 2027.
This is not a central bank digital currency — it is a private liability backed by reserves the banks hold themselves, with no Federal Reserve balance sheet involved. President Donald Trump signed an executive order in January 2025 banning federal agencies from developing a CBDC while directing the government to back private dollar-pegged stablecoins instead.
The roster spans five regions: North America, Europe, East Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, with 21 institutions including Wells Fargo, Fidelity Investments, Deutsche Bank, UBS, and Standard Bank. The banks intend the token for wholesale, institutional, and retail markets, with cross-border payments and digital asset settlement as the first applications.
A euro-denominated version is next in line, followed by other G7 currencies, and the venture is designed to comply with the U.S. GENIUS Act and the EU’s MiCA framework. Notably, JPMorgan is not among the 21 institutions on this week’s list.
Circle shares fell roughly 6% Tuesday as investors priced in the fresh bank-backed competition for USDC. The consortium’s target remains fixed: a U.S. dollar stablecoin in the market by the first half of 2027.
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