U.S. Bank completes live cross‑border payment using proprietary stablecoin on Stellar

U.S. Bank, the fifth‑largest commercial bank in the United States, has successfully executed a live cross‑border transaction using its own USBDC stablecoin on the public Stellar blockchain.

Pilot details

The test transferred USBDC between the bank’s North American and European entities. The stablecoin was issued, moved, and settled on Stellar, while the bank also exercised minting, redemption, freezing and clawback capabilities. All actions were integrated with U.S. Bank’s existing risk, compliance and operations frameworks.

Digital Asset Platform validation

The transaction confirmed the functionality of the bank’s internally built Digital Asset Platform, which links tokenized assets to its traditional banking infrastructure. U.S. Bank is evaluating further applications such as cross‑border treasury operations, liquidity management and on‑chain collateral movement.

Broader digital‑asset strategy

U.S. Bank created a dedicated Digital Assets and Money Movement unit in October 2025 to focus on stablecoin issuance, crypto custody, asset tokenization and digital money movement. The bank has been testing custom stablecoin issuance on Stellar since at least November 2025, collaborating with PwC and the Stellar Development Foundation.

Industry context

While many U.S. banks have resisted allowing stablecoin issuers to offer yield or rewards, several large institutions are advancing their own stablecoin projects. In September 2026, a consortium of 21 major banks announced plans to launch a U.S. dollar‑denominated stablecoin in early 2027, with later expansion to other G7 currencies. Fidelity also introduced its Fidelity Digital Dollar (FIDD) earlier in the year, reporting roughly $50 million in circulation.