TLDR:
- Mastercard and Visa are building stablecoin settlement rails for issuers and payment networks.
- Five major US banks plan a tokenized deposit network targeted for early 2027 launch.
- DTCC’s tokenization service spans 50+ firms, with RWA trades starting in July 2026.
- Standard Chartered’s Zodia Custody deal strengthens institutional digital asset custody offerings.
Wall Street’s institutional embrace of blockchain is accelerating, with Citi, Mastercard, Visa, DTCC, and several major banks now testing infrastructure for stablecoins, tokenized deposits, and settlement.
These moves signal a shift from trading-focused crypto exposure toward core financial plumbing, reshaping how money and assets move across global markets.
Payments and Deposits Drive Early Adoption
Stablecoin settlement has become a focal point for payment networks. Mastercard said in June it would add stablecoin settlement options for issuers and acquirers, while Visa is testing private stablecoin settlement with Brale on the Canton Network, a privacy-focused blockchain built for institutions.
Banks are pursuing a parallel approach centered on tokenized deposits. JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and The Clearing House are planning a bank-led tokenized deposit network targeted for the first half of 2027, according to a Wall Street Journal report.
Retail banking is also entering the space. SoFi launched its own SoFiUSD stablecoin on its retail banking platform and named Bullish as its first centralized exchange partner. The company’s leadership framed this as removing a long-standing barrier between crypto and traditional finance.
As CoinMarketCap noted in its coverage, Wall Street is entering the next phase of institutional crypto adoption, moving beyond trading desks and exchange-traded funds into core financial infrastructure. This shift extends well past payments into asset management itself.
Tokenization Reaches Private Markets and Fund Products
Private market access is expanding through tokenized structures. Citi launched Digital Depositary Receipts for private-company shares in June, creating a new way for investors to access private markets, amid rising demand for exposure to high-profile IPO candidates.
Fund products are following a similar path onchain. BlackRock has filed to expand its tokenized fund suite following the 2024 launch of BUIDL, its first tokenized money market fund.
Separately, Ondo Finance, Kinexys by J.P. Morgan, Mastercard, and Ripple completed a pilot to redeem a tokenized US Treasury fund on blockchain rails in May.
Equities are also moving toward tokenized formats. Coinbase has outlined plans to offer tokenized US equities to non-US customers, while Kraken’s parent company, Payward, has pushed tokenized IPO access through xStocks.
Behind these products, infrastructure providers are building the systems that support settlement and custody at scale.
DTCC said in May it was rolling out a tokenization service with more than 50 financial firms, with initial limited production trades for select tokenized real-world assets planned for July and a broader launch targeted for October.
Custody infrastructure is consolidating as well. Standard Chartered said in May it would acquire Zodia Custody’s crypto custody business and fold it into its own infrastructure, deepening its digital asset capabilities.
Industry observers describe this custody layer as essential groundwork. Ripple and Quinlan & Associates wrote in a February report that digital asset custody forms the foundational layer underpinning all digital asset use cases for financial institutions.
Together, these developments point toward blockchain becoming embedded in everyday financial operations, moving money, issuing securities, and settling transactions across major institutions.
