Major banks launch on-chain money initiative for tokenised deposits

A group of leading banks has launched a new digital payments initiative aimed at connecting blockchain-based activity with traditional payment rails, in a move that has sought to bring tokenised commercial bank money into mainstream settlement infrastructure. The Clearing House, which owns and operates critical U.S. payment networks, has said the initiative has combined established regulatory and operational frameworks with the programmability and interoperability of on-chain finance.

The programme was designed to enable on-chain clearing and settlement of tokenised deposits between banks within the regulated banking framework, while also creating a connectivity layer between blockchain activity and fiat rails such as RTP and CHIPS. That structure has aimed to support automated workflows, richer transaction data and 24/7 settlement, while preserving the balance-sheet role that commercial banks continue to play in the movement of money.

Manish Kohli, Head of Global Payments Solutions, HSBC, said, “At HSBC, we’re advancing tokenisation across multiple markets globally through our Tokenised Deposit Service, enabling 24/7, compliant, API-enabled movement of commercial bank money and supporting interoperability across networks. This initiative is an important step towards scaling tokenised deposits by connecting on-chain activity with established payment rails and enabling interbank clearing and settlement within the regulated banking frameworks, bringing programmability and richer data together with the trust and settlement certainty of commercial bank money.”

The Clearing House has said the solution has been made available to financial institutions across the United States, allowing banks of different sizes to participate in the emerging digital payments ecosystem through a trusted and interoperable infrastructure. The company’s president and chief executive officer, David Watson, has said the banking industry has long provided the trusted infrastructure underpinning global money movement and that The Clearing House has aimed to extend the safety, resiliency and settlement certainty of regulated bank payment rails to on-chain use cases.

Several major banks have already backed the initiative, including Bank of America, BMO, BNY, Citi, Citizens Financial Group, Fifth Third Bank, HSBC, J.P. Morgan Payments, KeyBank, PNC Bank, Regions Bank, Santander, TD Bank U.S., Truist, U.S. Bank and Wells Fargo. Their support has reflected a growing industry view that tokenised deposits and programmable payments could play a larger role in commercial banking, treasury operations and financial market infrastructure.

Zachary Wasserman, Chief Financial Officer, The Huntington National Bank, said, “This initiative highlights the power of banks working together to shape the future of digital payments while building on the strength of the existing banking system. By collaborating to establish common standards and shared infrastructure, we can unlock innovative, secure, and scalable capabilities that ultimately deliver greater value for our customers.”

The initiative has also pointed to a wider set of use cases, including programmable treasury operations, real-time liquidity management, cross-border payments, agentic commerce applications, digital asset settlement and automated financial workflows. The Clearing House and participating institutions have said they will continue working with industry stakeholders to explore future interoperability standards, implementation approaches and further applications for trusted digital financial infrastructure.

At a broader level, the launch has underscored how established banking infrastructure has begun to merge with blockchain-enabled finance. Rather than replacing conventional rails, the initiative has aimed to connect them, giving banks a route to offer programmable money movement while still operating within the safeguards of the regulated banking system.