SoFi Bank and Mastercard have taken stablecoin settlement live across SoFi’s debit and credit card program, moving a payments business expected to process more than $25 billion in annualized volume onto blockchain-based settlement rails. The companies announced the launch on September 22, six months after first unveiling their partnership. Transactions using SoFiUSD are already live onchain, and SoFi is now migrating its entire Mastercard card program to the new settlement system.
SoFi describes itself as the first U.S. national bank to operate stablecoin settlement across Mastercard’s global payments network. The development is different from allowing consumers to pay merchants directly with cryptocurrency. Cardholders can continue using their cards normally, while merchants do not need crypto wallets, stablecoins or new blockchain infrastructure. The blockchain component operates within the settlement layer behind conventional card transactions.
$25 Billion Card Program Moves Onto SoFiUSD
Settlement will use SoFiUSD, the dollar stablecoin issued by SoFi Bank, N.A., an OCC-regulated nationally chartered bank. SoFiUSD is redeemable 1:1 for U.S. dollars and supported by reserves consisting primarily of cash. However, SoFi explicitly states that the token itself is not a bank deposit, is not FDIC or SIPC insured, is not bank-guaranteed and is not legal tender. For merchants, the system is designed to keep that stablecoin complexity largely invisible.
Through SoFi’s Big Business Banking platform, merchants can receive settlement proceeds directly into a SoFi Bank account and convert or withdraw them into cash around the clock at no cost, according to Chief Executive Anthony Noto. That potentially addresses one of the practical limitations of conventional card settlement: businesses typically depend on banking hours and established clearing cycles before funds become available. The launch also moves the partnership beyond the experimental stage. When Mastercard and SoFi announced their agreement in March, they said they would explore using SoFiUSD for issuer and acquirer settlement. Six months later, SoFi’s own card transactions are now operating through the system.
Mastercard Builds a Multi-Stablecoin Settlement Network
The arrangement is not intended to remain limited to SoFi. SoFi says it is already discussing stablecoin-based settlement with large U.S. merchants, ranging from multinational retailers to technology-service platforms. The companies are also exploring SoFiUSD for cross-border payments, remittances and other money-movement applications. Mastercard, meanwhile, is building a considerably broader stablecoin settlement architecture. In June, the payments company said its network would support regulated stablecoins including Circle’s USDC, PayPal’s PYUSD, Paxos’ USDG and USDP, Ripple’s RLUSD and SoFiUSD. Supported blockchain networks include Ethereum, Solana, Base, Arbitrum, Polygon, XRP Ledger, Canton and Tempo. Mastercard said stablecoin settlement could provide issuers and acquirers with greater flexibility around liquidity and settlement timing, including intraday, weekend and holiday transactions.
SoFi’s launch therefore represents more than another crypto-payment pilot. A federally regulated bank is placing an existing card business with more than $25 billion of expected annualized transaction volume onto live stablecoin settlement while preserving the familiar card experience for consumers and merchants. The significance lies precisely in that invisibility: users do not need to adopt crypto for blockchain infrastructure to begin operating underneath mainstream payments.
