Interactive Brokers Evaluating Stablecoin Launch to Enable 24/7 Client Funding: Report
Interactive Brokers is weighing the launch of its own stablecoin as it looks to expand its crypto services and enable round-the-clock account funding, Reuters reported.
If successful, the move would place the broker among a growing number of financial firms embracing blockchain technology amid a more favorable U.S. regulatory climate.
Founder Thomas Peterffy told the media publication that the company is exploring the idea but has not yet decided on the structure of such a product. Depending on the credibility of the issuer, the firm is also evaluating whether to support stablecoins issued by third parties.
IBKR Targets Instant Crypto Transfers
The Connecticut-based brokerage, with a market capitalization of around $110 billion, is working to enable instant, 24/7 stablecoin-based funding for brokerage accounts. It is also looking to support transfers of widely traded cryptocurrencies.
Interactive Brokers currently offers crypto trading through partnerships with Paxos and Zero Hash. Through these arrangements, clients can reportedly access a range of digital assets directly through the IBKR platform.
The deliberations come just weeks after rival brokerage Robinhood launched a dollar-pegged stablecoin—USDG—through a consortium that includes Paxos, Kraken, and Galaxy Digital.
That initiative, called the Global Dollar Network, highlights the growing interest among trading platforms in offering crypto-based payment and funding solutions.
Stablecoins Expand
Stablecoins allow users to move money without relying on traditional banking infrastructure. While regulators have begun easing restrictions, critics warn that such assets could be used to avoid compliance checks such as anti-money laundering controls.
Interactive Brokers reported 3.87 million customer accounts as of the end of June, marking a 32% increase from the prior year. Its shares have climbed about 47% since January, outperforming the broader brokerage sector.
Since the signing of the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act by former President Trump, the United States has taken its first concrete step toward regulating digital assets. In response, major corporations are showing growing interest in stablecoins.
Read more: Trump Signs GENIUS Act Into Law, Setting Stage for Wider Crypto Oversight
Citi CEO Jane Fraser recently confirmed the bank is “looking at the issuance of a Citi stablecoin,” adding that tokenized deposits and crypto custody services are also under consideration.
While the GENIUS Act focuses specifically on stablecoins, defining their issuers and laying out a regulatory framework, it leaves broader areas of the crypto sector, such as exchanges and other digital assets, largely unaddressed.