Big Banks Plan Tokenized Deposit Network to Counter Stablecoin Drift
Major US lenders including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Citigroup are preparing a shared tokenized deposit network through The Clearing House for the first half of 2027. A March Jeffries report put possible core-deposit attrition at 3% to 5% over a five-year period and estimated an average bank earnings hit of about 3%. The next signal is whether bank-issued tokens can deliver round-the-clock settlement without moving customer deposits outside the regulated banking system.
Major US lenders including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Citigroup are preparing a tokenized deposit network with The Clearing House for the first half of 2027, turning stablecoin pressure into a bank-controlled blockchain payments response.
The planned network would allow bank deposits to settle around the clock on blockchain infrastructure while keeping customer funds inside the regulated banking system.
The immediate target is the growing use of dollar-pegged stablecoins such as USDC and USDT in crypto trading, cross-border payments and savings products.
Banks Move Onchain Without Opening the Rails
The Clearing House initiative gives major lenders a way to offer blockchain-style settlement without adopting the open-network model used by crypto-native stablecoins.
A customer’s deposit would be represented as a digital token that can move across blockchain rails, but the funds would remain within the banking system.
Reid Noch, vice president of U.S. equity market structure at TD Securities, framed the move as a three-way contest after the GENIUS Act among stablecoins, tokenized deposits and tokenized money market funds.
For banks, the risk is not only payment speed.
If stablecoins become mainstream, deposits could migrate from traditional accounts into crypto wallets.
A March Jeffries report put possible core-deposit attrition at 3% to 5% over a five-year period and estimated an average bank earnings hit of about 3%.
Settlement Speed Becomes the Product Test
Noch said tokenized deposits could address the cost and timing problems of international wires, a process he described as expensive and often one or two business days long.
The practical test is whether bank-issued tokens can deliver near-instant, round-the-clock transfers while preserving the compliance framework corporate customers already use.
Noelle Acheson, author of “Crypto is Macro Now,” said banks have long tested private blockchain designs where user and transaction controls stay tight.
Digital Chamber CEO Cody Carbone cast the move as a validation of blockchain adoption by traditional finance, saying the largest US banks were voluntarily coming onchain.
Stablecoins Keep the Liquidity Advantage
The bank model still differs sharply from public blockchain ecosystems where stablecoins circulate freely.
Acheson argued that stablecoins offer greater liquidity and flexibility, while many corporate customers may prefer a bank-backed system that fits existing compliance requirements.
The next signal is whether the Clearing House network moves from a first-half 2027 launch plan into a working corporate payments system that can compete with USDC and USDT without pushing deposits outside banks.
