Are Banks Ready for the Shift to Digital Money?

In June 2026 the payments landscape saw two major moves. A 140-member consortium that includes Visa, Mastercard, BlackRock and Stripe launched Open USD, a shared stablecoin network. In the same month a group of large US banks, including JPMorgan, Citi, Bank of America and Wells Fargo, announced a bank-led tokenised-deposit network via The Clearing House.

SoFi added a stablecoin inside its consumer app, and remittance firms Western Union and MoneyGram rolled out dollar tokens for cross-border transfers. In Europe the European Central Bank plans to move wholesale central bank money onto distributed ledger technology with Pontos due to launch this quarter, and a retail digital euro pilot is scheduled for 2027. Regulatory frameworks are forming, including proposals in the US, the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets regime and a UK regime for systemic stablecoins.

Banks that work with stablecoins must set up custody and reserve-holding arrangements, connect to token-issuance and settlement rails, and build compliance systems for converting fiat balances to token balances and back. These changes touch custody, accounting and know-your-customer and anti-money-laundering controls.

Tokenised deposits require banks to issue on-balance-sheet tokens, link token accounting to core banking ledgers, and manage intraday liquidity and reserve accounting on token rails. Banks must adapt settlement processes so token transfers are recorded consistently with existing deposit records.

Wholesale CBDC work focuses on interbank settlement and central-bank bookkeeping. In the ECB’s Pontos project, central bank settlement services are being moved onto ledger technology to allow central bank money to interact with distributed ledgers used by banks and market infrastructures.

Each digital-money layer maps to different rails and users. Stablecoins have gained use in remittances and some consumer payments because they can move value quickly over private rails and interact with existing crypto networks. Tokenised deposits are structured to keep deposit liabilities inside the banking system while enabling instant settlement and programmable features for corporate and treasury clients. Wholesale CBDCs are designed for interbank and large-value settlement, connecting central bank balances to ledger-based systems.

The models affect banks’ payment hubs and deposit bases in different ways. Tokenised deposits appear on banks’ balance sheets and require changes to liquidity and reserve operations to support instant settlement. Stablecoins issued by non-bank entities can sit off a bank’s balance sheet unless the bank provides custody or backs them, creating new on- and off-ramping relationships with token issuers and service providers. Wholesale CBDCs will change how banks access central bank balances and how settlement finality is achieved during the day.

Regulatory and operational rulebooks are in development. Authorities and supervisors are defining issuer requirements, custody standards, settlement finality and anti-money-laundering controls. Industry groups and technology providers are working on interoperability specifications and settlement standards to enable activity across stablecoin, tokenised-deposit and CBDC platforms.

Red Compass Labs has produced industry data to assess readiness and gaps across financial institutions; that data will be discussed at an upcoming industry webinar. Near-term milestones include the live rollouts of Open USD and The Clearing House tokenised-deposit services, the Pontos launch this quarter, and the planned 2027 retail digital euro pilot, with further pilots and product launches expected across consumer, merchant and cross-border segments.