There has been new progress in the US dollar stablecoin project, which is being driven by several major global banks and asset management institutions. According to a joint statement, 21 institutions including Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, and Citibank have committed to establishing a new company responsible for issuing stablecoins pegged to the US dollar, with the goal of launching the product onto the market in the first half of 2027.
Establish an issuing entity in the second half of 2026
The name of the company that is to be established has not yet been announced. It is expected to be formed in the second half of 2026, but it still needs to meet the relevant delivery conditions. Compared to October 2025 when only 10 institutions were involved, the current lineup has expanded to 21, covering North America, Europe, East Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.
The participants include Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Citibank, Fidelity Investments, Wells Fargo, Santander, Deutsche Bank, UBS, and Mitsubishi Bank, among others. JPMorgan Chase was involved in the early discussions but is not listed among the 21 banks announced this time.
The first batch of applications is aimed at cross-border payments.
These institutions plan to use this stablecoin for wholesale, institutional, and retail markets, with the initial focus on cross-border payments and digital asset settlements. After the launch of the US dollar version, they will consider launching a euro version, and then gradually expand to other G7 currencies.
Structurally, this product is not a central bank digital currency. The liability bearer will be commercial companies, not the Federal Reserve, and the reserve assets will be held by the participating banks themselves, not entering the Federal Reserve's balance sheet.
The project will connect GENIUS Act with MiCA.
The article mentions that this arrangement is in line with the current policy direction of the United States. The Trump administration issued an executive order in January 2025 prohibiting federal agencies from developing or issuing CBDC, while explicitly supporting the private sector in issuing stablecoins pegged to the US dollar.
The project also plans to comply with the applicable requirements under the US GENIUS Act and EU MiCA frameworks, demonstrating that its design is aimed at compliant issuance and cross-regional use from the very beginning, rather than serving a single market alone.
Additional information:In addition to this project, in August, 39 state-level banking organizations established BankChain Alliance to promote a tokenized deposit network; in June, institutions such as Visa, Mastercard, and Stripe supported the competitive stablecoin Open USD.
