BNY Mellon adds USDC custody and minting for institutional clients
In brief
- BNY Mellon expands Digital Asset Custody platform to support USDC holding and minting
- Institutional clients can instruct Circle to mint or redeem USDC against U.S. dollars
- BNY Mellon serves as primary custodian of USDC reserves and plans additional stablecoin support
Custody and minting on a traditional infrastructure
USDC will become the first stablecoin supported on BNY's Digital Asset Custody platform. Clients will be able to hold USDC in custody at BNY and instruct Circle to convert U.S. dollars into the stablecoin or redeem USDC back into dollars. The bank already serves as the primary custodian of the reserves backing the stablecoin, positioning it as a natural infrastructure provider for this service.
BNY plans to support additional stablecoin issuers over time, signaling a broader institutional push into the space. The move follows the 2025 passage of the GENIUS Act, the U.S. law establishing a federal framework for U.S. dollar-backed stablecoins, which has accelerated adoption among traditional financial institutions.
Market expansion and institutional demand
Circle's USDC is the second-largest stablecoin with a market capitalization of over $73 billion. Stablecoins are increasingly finding broader uses in payments, cross-border transfers and securities settlement. Standard Chartered projected the stablecoin market could expand from roughly $300 billion today to $2 trillion by the end of 2028, while Citigroup estimated it could reach $4 trillion by 2030 in its base case.
The infrastructure BNY is building reflects how institutions view stablecoins as a critical piece of modern finance. Carolyn Weinberg, chief product and innovation officer at BNY, said in a statement: "As digital assets become increasingly integrated into financial markets, institutions need infrastructure that seamlessly works across traditional and blockchain-based systems."
