- Tokenized deposits are gaining ground among US banks.
- Blockchain can accelerate global payments and settlements.
- JPMorgan and Citi are betting on on-chain finance.
The largest banks in the United States are preparing to take a new step in integrating blockchain and the traditional financial system. A consortium formed by institutions such as JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, and Wells Fargo is working on developing a tokenized deposit network, with a planned launch in the first half of 2027.
The infrastructure will be operated by Clearing House, a private payments company controlled by major US banks. The project aims to modernize how funds are moved between institutions and corporate clients, using blockchain technology to enable virtually instantaneous transfers.
Internally, the platform has received different nicknames among the project participants. While some banks call it "the bridge," others prefer the name "the chain." Regardless of the nomenclature, the central proposal is to create a network capable of moving tokenized deposits in real time, with settlement available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
According to David Watson, CEO of the Clearing House, the initiative represents a "major step for banks," adding that the sector faces a "radically different" future built around on-chain payments and finance.
The expectation is that the first users of the network will be large multinational companies interested in improving treasury and cash management processes. With the new structure, companies will be able to move liquidity continuously, make international payments more efficiently, and manage resources without depending on the traditional hours of the banking system.
The project also reinforces a trend that has been gaining momentum among global financial institutions. In recent years, several banks have started investing in tokenized deposits, considered by many industry executives as an alternative capable of combining the security of the regulated banking system with the speed provided by blockchain networks.
JPMorgan had already expanded its presence in this segment by making its dollar deposit token available to institutional clients after a testing phase. BNY also launched a similar service aimed at the institutional market, creating digital representations of deposits held at the bank.
Furthermore, international initiatives continue to advance. In Singapore, DBS and JPMorgan's Kinexys division announced the development of an interoperability framework designed to facilitate the transfer of tokenized deposits between different on-chain ecosystems, a move that points to increasing integration between financial institutions and blockchain-based technologies.














