JPMorgan, Citi, BofA, and Wells Fargo Plan 2027 Tokenized Deposit Network as Banks Move to Counter Stablecoins

JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and other major US commercial banks plan to launch a tokenized deposit network in the first half of 2027, according to The Wall Street Journal. The initiative represents Wall Street’s most coordinated competitive response to stablecoins to date.

The network will be operated by The Clearing House, the real-time payments company jointly owned by the participating banks. Internally referred to as “the bridge” by some banks and “the chain” by others, the platform will enable tokenized deposits to move instantly and support 24/7 settlement, connecting traditional bank payment rails with blockchain infrastructure.

This story is an excerpt from the Unchained Daily newsletter.

A blockchain vendor has not yet been selected. Clearing House CEO David Watson told the WSJ that the initiative represents “a big move for the banks,” adding that the industry faces a “radically different” future built around onchain payments and finance. Early users are expected to be large multinational corporations seeking faster cross-border payments, programmable treasury operations, and real-time liquidity management.

The structural distinction is the point.

Tokenized deposits represent actual bank deposit claims recorded on a blockchain, backed one-for-one by reserves held at the issuing bank, with the same credit risk profile, regulatory treatment, FDIC eligibility, and accounting approach as traditional deposits. Stablecoins, by contrast, are issued by non-bank entities and backed by cash and Treasuries held in custody outside the regulated deposit system.

The tokenized deposit approach lets banks add blockchain functionality while keeping customer funds inside the regulated banking perimeter, addressing what bank executives have characterized as a structural disintermediation threat from stablecoin growth.

The CLARITY Act context sharpens the move. Banks have grown increasingly concerned that the stablecoin yield provisions in the CLARITY Act could allow issuers to offer interest-bearing products that compete directly with bank deposit rates.

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon publicly opposed those provisions two weeks ago, calling Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong “full of sh*t.” The Clearing House network is the industry’s formal answer: rather than just oppose stablecoin yield, build the alternative.

Several participants are already deploying tokenized deposit infrastructure. JPMorgan launched its JPM Coin (JPMD) on Coinbase’s Base Layer 2 for institutional clients in late 2025 and has since expanded toward the Canton Network. Citigroup has built Citi Token Services for cross-border instant payments.

BNY launched its own tokenized deposit service for institutions in January. A separate consortium of regional lenders formed the Cari Network to target retail tokenized deposits, with a pilot planned for Q3 2026 and customer launch in Q4. Bank of America’s head of global payments Mark Monaco acknowledged that clients aren’t necessarily “beating down the door” for tokenized deposits, but said the network would ensure banks are positioned when demand builds. Citi’s Shahmir Khaliq said the network “effectively cements” the role banks play in financing, money management, and capital markets.

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