Goldman Sachs, Japan’s MUFG, Deutsche Bank and 18 Other Consortium Members to Issue Dollar Stablecoin Next Year

[Financial News] A consortium of global major banks issuing a dollar-pegged stablecoin has more than doubled its membership and agreed to jointly launch the dollar stablecoin in the first half of next year.
Goldman Sachs, Bank of America (BofA), Citigroup, Deutsche Bank and 17 other financial institutions said in a statement on the 1st (local time) that they would establish an issuing entity in the second half of this year and bring a dollar stablecoin to market in the first half of next year. The consortium was initially launched in October last year with 10 banks, but its membership has more than doubled in just 10 months.
Ten institutions from North America, including Goldman Sachs, BofA and Citigroup, and eight from Europe, including Deutsche Bank, UBS, Santander and Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA), are participating. MUFG is the only institution from Asia. Banks from the Middle East and Africa have also joined, giving the consortium a lineup that effectively spans all major regions of the world.
The institutions said they plan to comply with both the U.S. stablecoin legislation known as the GENIUS Act and the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA). They added that the consortium is targeting wholesale, institutional and retail markets, including cross-border payments and digital-asset payments.
After the dollar stablecoin, the consortium plans to expand its business to stablecoins pegged to other G7 currencies, with the euro as its first priority.
Competition among banks in the stablecoin market is intensifying. Qivalis, a consortium of 37 institutions that includes Spain’s BBVA, has also announced plans to launch a euro stablecoin by the end of this year.
World Liberty Financial, the cryptocurrency venture of U.S. President Donald Trump’s family, is already issuing its own stablecoin.
The rebound in cryptocurrency prices in 2024 and President Trump’s pro-cryptocurrency stance are widely seen as having fueled this trend.
However, Tether remains overwhelmingly dominant in the stablecoin market, with more than $180 billion in circulation. Societe Generale, which issued a stablecoin last year, has circulation of only $12.5 million, indicating that demand for bank-issued stablecoins remains limited.
Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank (ECB), has warned that privately issued stablecoins could pose risks to monetary policy and financial stability.

[email protected] International Affairs Specialist Lee Seok-woo Reporter