U.S. Bank has completed a live pilot transaction using USBDC, its proprietary U.S. dollar-backed stablecoin, moving a cross-border payment between its entities in North America and Europe.
The transaction ran on the Stellar blockchain, and the bank says USBDC ranks among the first bank-issued stablecoins deployed on a public network, signaling that the Minneapolis lender wants to move value on-chain while keeping the payment tied to its existing finance, risk, compliance and operations infrastructure. The pilot builds on an effort dating to November 2025, when U.S. Bancorp began testing the dollar-backed token on Stellar, a month after standing up a dedicated digital assets division.
Testing Stablecoin Rails
The bank tested minting, payment redemption, freezing and clawback functions during the run, and it validated the internally developed Digital Asset Platform that issues, manages and moves tokenized assets. That platform connects traditional banking infrastructure with blockchain networks, letting USBDC circulate on public rails without severing links to the bank’s core systems.
“This live pilot demonstrates our ability to accelerate global cash management and money movement capabilities,” said Gunjan Kedia, chairman and chief executive officer at U.S. Bank.
“We are excited to create value for our clients and harness the power of a new technology within the banking system.”
The push mirrors a wider move among large lenders, with Bank of America, Goldman Sachs and 19 other firms forming a 21-member consortium that plans a dollar token in the first half of 2027.
Investor Takeaway
U.S. Bank’s pilot shows that USBDC can move on public blockchain rails while remaining connected to the bank’s existing financial and compliance systems.
Betting On Stellar
U.S. Bank built the pilot on its strategic relationship with the Stellar Development Foundation, pointing to the network’s global reach, near-instant settlement and sub-cent costs as reasons it suits regulated financial services. That choice tracks Stellar’s growing institutional footprint, which sharpened when a landmark DTCC tokenization partnership validated its enterprise utility.
DeFiLlama values the broader stablecoin market at $305.433 billion, with dollar-denominated tokens accounting for more than 99% at $303.848 billion, while Stellar carries just $938.04 million of that supply, leaving U.S. Bank room to expand on the network. USBDC promises 24/7 transaction capabilities, a departure from the fixed hours that govern conventional settlement.
U.S. Bank is now exploring wider institutional uses for the token, among them enhanced liquidity management, collateral mobility and cross-border treasury operations. “Our focus remains on delivering solutions that solve real client challenges while maintaining the safety, security and reliability that clients expect from U.S. Bank,” said Jamie Walker, Head of Digital Assets and Money Movement at U.S. Bank. Regulators are tightening the frame around that ambition, having proposed bank-style customer identity checks for stablecoin issuers under the GENIUS Act, even as a coalition of lenders warns that the current framework still falls short of protecting bank deposits.
Investor Takeaway
Stellar gives U.S. Bank a low-cost, always-on settlement network as it explores broader uses for USBDC across institutional payments and treasury operations.
