Citi partners with Coinbase on stablecoin payments for large institutions

Citigroup is partnering with Coinbase to enable stablecoin payments for large institutional clients. The partnership will connect Citi's merchant-processing and banking infrastructure with Coinbase's blockchain payment rails. Citi's institutional clients, including multinational corporations, will be able to accept customer stablecoin payments at checkout through Citi's merchant-processing services. Businesses will be able to convert accepted stablecoins into traditional currencies. Coinbase payments customers will be able to use Citi's banking capabilities. They will also be able to automatically convert incoming cash into stablecoins. Coinbase will hold those tokens. The tokens can currently earn an annual reward of 3.75%. The CLARITY Act failed to advance in the Senate. Citi Head of Services Shahmir Khaliq said Citi was continuing to operate within its banking license and current regulations. Coinbase Institutional head Brett Tejpaul said the partnership could help consumers and businesses move between dollars and stablecoins without leaving the traditional banking system. Citi expanded its blockchain-based Token Services to Japan and the U.A.E. The platform now covers seven jurisdictions, including the U.S. Earlier this month, Coinbase opened IPO allocations to eligible U.S. retail investors. Customers can request shares at the offering price through its app before public trading begins. Coinbase also expanded into stock trading. Coinbase sought regulatory approval to offer equity perpetual futures. CEO Brian Armstrong has highlighted the potential role of AI agents in corporate software and financial infrastructure. Armstrong argued that AI agents could autonomously discover and compare services based on cost, reliability and performance. He said this could potentially allow businesses to operate more efficiently.