Forget Bitcoin & Ethereum — Citi's Stablecoin Bet Could Spark A $1.9 Trillion Boom By 2030

Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) has quietly joined Wall Street's stablecoin race, investing in U.K.-based BVNK as banks prepare for what could become a $1.9 trillion market for tokenized dollars.

Citi Deepens Push Into Tokenized Money

The deal came through Citi Ventures on Thursday. BVNK handles over $20 billion in annual transactions for clients such as Worldpay, Flywire, and dLocal.

"Stablecoins are gaining traction in on-chain settlement and asset payments," said Arvind Purushotham, head of Citi Ventures. The bank did not disclose the deal's size.

Citi joins peers accelerating into the regulated stablecoin sector after the GENIUS Act took effect in July. The new law gives U.S. banks authority to issue and manage payment stablecoins under Treasury oversight.

From Bitcoin Skepticism To Dollar Tokenization

Citi's move marks a sharp shift from speculative crypto trading toward practical tokenization of dollars and financial instruments. 

CEO Jane Fraser said this summer that Citi is exploring its own Citi-branded stablecoin. The goal is to make global settlement faster and improve digital custody services.

Citi's in-house research division recently raised its 2030 base-case forecast for stablecoin issuance to $1.9 trillion, reflecting the scale of potential institutional adoption. 

By comparison, DefiLlama data shows the current global stablecoin supply stands at $289.3 billion, led by Tether (USDT) and USD Coin (USDC).

Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan have also advanced in this area. 

JPMorgan's JPM Coin already facilitates billions in daily wholesale transfers, while Goldman is developing tokenized cash settlement tools within its digital-assets division.

The GENIUS Act Opens A New Chapter

The GENIUS Act, passed in July, is seen as the most consequential U.S. financial law since Dodd-Frank in terms of digital asset impact. 

It formalizes how stablecoins can be issued, backed, and supervised by insured depository institutions, giving traditional banks the green light to participate without falling afoul of securities laws.

The Treasury Department is now conducting a public consultation phase to shape implementation guidelines — a step that could officially bring stablecoins into the U.S. payments system by 2026.

Why It Matters

Stablecoins are no longer just crypto plumbing — they are becoming the pipes of global finance. 

Citi's bet on BVNK signals that dollar-backed tokens may evolve into the default medium for cross-border money movement, rivaling SWIFT. 

The $1.9 trillion forecast is not simply growth, it's a reshaping of how value flows between nations, banks, and corporations. 

If Wall Street aligns behind this model, stablecoins could become the first blockchain use case to leap from fringe to financial backbone.

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