Wells Fargo CEO says bank is building stablecoin tools even as US use cases remain unclear
Wells Fargo reported growth in banking and commercial lending while investing in tokenized deposits, stablecoins and artificial intelligence.
Wells Fargo is expanding its digital payments business through tokenized deposits and a planned stablecoin venture, Chief Executive Officer Charlie Scharf said during the company’s third-quarter earnings call on Tuesday.
The banking giant, which has approximately $2.3 trillion in assets, is working with 20 other international financial institutions, including Bank of America, Citi, Goldman Sachs, to establish a company to issue a stablecoin, initially pegged to the US dollar.
The group aims to launch the offering in the first half of 2027, with euro-denominated issuance as a long-term priority. Scharf said the product would serve wholesale, institutional and retail users and support cross-border payments and digital asset settlement.
“Use cases in the US for stablecoins remain unclear, but we’re building solutions to be prepared as opportunities potentially unfold,” he said.
The bank launched tokenized deposits on its proprietary blockchain platform last month, giving corporate and commercial customers another way to move funds.
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As the platform expands, clients are expected to be able to transfer money around the clock across accounts and borders without changing their existing banking arrangements, Scharf noted.
“We are accelerating our investments in both traditional digital payments and traditional and digital payment solutions for consumers and businesses. We believe tokenized deposits can deliver important benefits for the businesses we serve,” the bank chief said.
Wells Fargo’s third-quarter net income climbed to $6 billion from about $5.6 billion a year earlier. Revenue grew 2% to approximately $21.8 billion, as higher income from wealth management, commercial banking and consumer banking offset weaker results in some other businesses.
Scharf added that the bank is applying AI to software development, marketing, branch operations, cybersecurity and risk management, while working to improve the customer experience.