{"id":33661,"date":"2026-07-02T09:10:37","date_gmt":"2026-07-02T09:10:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/standard-chartered-and-circle-launch-bank-led-usdc-access\/"},"modified":"2026-07-02T09:10:52","modified_gmt":"2026-07-02T09:10:52","slug":"standard-chartered-and-circle-launch-bank-led-usdc-access","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/standard-chartered-and-circle-launch-bank-led-usdc-access\/","title":{"rendered":"Standard Chartered and Circle launch bank-led USDC access"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"post-detail__content blocks\">\n<p class=\"is-style-lead\">Standard Chartered has launched a new service that gives eligible institutional clients access to USDC minting and redemption through its own banking platform.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div id=\"cn-block-summary-block_9c2f16913bf77cd856bf07b0f19eadbc\" class=\"cn-block-summary\">\n<div class=\"cn-block-summary__nav tabs\">\n        <span class=\"tabs__item is-selected\">Summary<\/span>\n    <\/div>\n<div class=\"cn-block-summary__content\">\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Standard Chartered now lets eligible institutions access USDC minting and redemption without direct Circle accounts globally.<\/li>\n<li>The service starts through DIFC operations and may expand to more markets after approvals.<\/li>\n<li>Circle said the partnership supports institutional use cases across settlement, treasury, liquidity management, and payments.<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><!-- .cn-block-summary --><\/p>\n<p>The product was developed with Circle, the issuer of USDC. Meanwhile, the bank said the setup lets clients use one onboarding and service experience instead of opening direct accounts with Circle. It connects fiat banking, custody, digital asset infrastructure, and public blockchain networks inside one bank-led offering.<\/p>\n<p>The service starts through Standard Chartered\u2019s DIFC operations in Dubai. The bank plans to expand it into other markets, subject to local approvals and market readiness.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- .cn-block-related-link --><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Standard Chartered offers USDC access through one bank platform<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The Standard Chartered and Circle <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.circle.com\/pressroom\/standard-chartered-and-circle-launch-launch-first-g-sib-led-integrated-access-to-usdc-minting-and-redemption\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">launch<\/a> makes the bank the first Global Systemically Important Bank licensed to offer institutional clients integrated USDC minting and redemption access. Circle said clients can use the service without holding direct Circle accounts.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Circle \ud83e\udd1d Standard Chartered<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/StanChart?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@StanChart<\/a> has launched institutional USDC minting and redemption through DIFC, becoming the first G-SIB to offer institutional access to USDC through a regulated banking channel.<\/p>\n<p>A major milestone for institutional stablecoin adoption.\u2026 <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/SufjFOqjyk\">pic.twitter.com\/SufjFOqjyk<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Circle (@circle) <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/circle\/status\/2072591108102586595?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 2, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The product targets use cases such as onchain settlement, treasury operations, and liquidity management. It also gives Standard Chartered a path to support payment-related use cases in the future as stablecoin infrastructure becomes part of institutional workflows.<\/p>\n<p>Roberto Hoornweg, Chief Executive Officer for Corporate and Investment Banking at Standard Chartered, said, \u201cDigital assets are becoming an increasingly important component of global financial infrastructure.\u201d He added that clients want the same trust and governance standards that support traditional markets.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Circle links USDC to regulated banking channels<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Circle Chief Commercial Officer Kash Razzaghi said financial institutions want trusted access to stablecoins and blockchain-based markets. He said integrating Circle\u2019s infrastructure into Standard Chartered\u2019s platform can help institutions use USDC across payments, settlement, and treasury operations.<\/p>\n<p>The launch follows other bank-linked USDC moves. As previously reported, BNY unlocked USDC minting and redemption for clients, allowing them to convert U.S. dollars into USDC and redeem the stablecoin back into dollars from within its platform.<\/p>\n<p>Circle has also been widening its institutional payment network. Crypto.news reported that Circle Payments Network launched for banks, giving banks and fintechs a managed USDC settlement option without requiring them to manage custody systems or blockchain operations directly.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>UAE role grows in stablecoin infrastructure<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Standard Chartered said the launch reinforces the UAE\u2019s role as a hub for regulated digital asset activity. The service begins in DIFC, where many global banks and digital asset firms already serve institutional clients across the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.<\/p>\n<p>The UAE has also moved to build local stablecoin rules and products. Moreover, the UAE unveiled its first central bank-approved stablecoin, creating a locally regulated dollar-backed token that competes with USDC in certain institutional use cases.<\/p>\n<p>Standard Chartered has also expanded digital asset payment rails in the region. Previously, Singapore Gulf Bank tapped Standard Chartered to improve cross-border settlement and multi-currency payment services across Middle East and Asia corridors.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Stablecoin competition keeps rising<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The bank-led USDC service comes as competition around stablecoin access grows. As crypto.news reported, Circle shares fell 17.5% after Russell Growth removals and the launch of Open USD, a rival stablecoin backed by a large group of partners.<\/p>\n<p>Banks and fintechs are also building more stablecoin infrastructure directly. Checker raised $8 million to help banks and fintechs launch stablecoin products through a single API.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- .cn-block-related-link --><\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Standard Chartered has launched a new service that gives eligible institutional clients access to USDC minting and redemption through its own banking platform.\u00a0 Summary Standard Chartered now lets eligible institutions&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":33662,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33661","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cryptocurrency"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33661","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33661"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33661\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33663,"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33661\/revisions\/33663"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33662"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33661"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33661"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33661"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}