21 global banks form a stablecoin company, with a USD launch planned for H1 2027

A consortium of 21 international banks has confirmed plans to set up a new company to issue stablecoins. For high-risk payment operators, the detail that matters is not the press-release gloss: the banks are building something meant for institutional payments, digital asset settlement, and eventually everyday retail use.

1. The group says the company will be formalized in the second half of this year, with its first asset — a stablecoin denominated in U.S. dollars — scheduled for launch in the first half of 2027. A second stablecoin, pegged to another G7 currency, is also planned, with the euro listed as the priority.
2. The project began in October 2025 with an initial group of 10 banks exploring the technical and regulatory feasibility. In less than a year, that number has doubled to 21 members spanning North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa.
3. The North American members named are Bank of America, Citi, Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo, Capital One, Fidelity Investments, PNC, Scotiabank, TD Bank Group, and WisdomTree. In Europe: Santander, BBVA, Deutsche Bank, Commerzbank, Crédit Agricole, Lloyds, Rabobank, and UBS. Asia is represented by MUFG Bank and Sirius International Holding, and Africa by Standard Bank.
4. The banks say the infrastructure will be aligned with both the U.S. GENIUS Act and the European Union’s MiCA framework. The stablecoin is intended to operate across three use cases: institutional payments, settlement of digital asset transactions, and everyday retail payments.
5. The announcement lands alongside other bank-led stablecoin efforts. Two months earlier, a separate consortium of 140 companies, including Visa, Mastercard, and Google, launched Open USD, while in Europe a group of 37 entities is advancing a similar project called Qivalis. In practice, that means stablecoins are no longer just a Tether (USDT) and Circle (USDC) story; traditional banking is moving into the same lane.

Mauro Andreoli, an institutional figure at IOG (Input Output Global), said the timing is right to push for legal support around blockchain infrastructure and linked the moment to the Clarity Act promoted by the