SoFiUSD goes live on SoFi Bank's Mastercard settlement

SoFiUSD is live as the settlement asset on SoFi Bank's own Mastercard debit and credit cards, and the merchant still does not have to hold it. On September 22, 2026, SoFi Technologies and Mastercard said transactions on that program are on the blockchain today. The figure in the release, more than $25 billion of expected annualized volume, is the card book being migrated, not a completed year of on-chain turnover.

The September 22 release says SoFi Bank, N.A. is migrating its entire $25 billion card program to settlement in SoFiUSD (SOFID), which the company calls the first stablecoin issued by a nationally chartered bank. The program is expected to process more than $25 billion in annualized volume using SoFiUSD. The cautionary statement lists "expectations regarding the amount of transactions processed" as forward-looking. What is current is narrower: settlement is live on the debit and credit program, and transactions are live on the blockchain. The chain is not named. The release PDF carries the same text.

Production is the bank's own book

On March 3, 2026, the companies said they would explore issuer and acquirer settlement in SoFiUSD, that SoFi Bank was expected to settle its own Mastercard credit and debit transactions in the coin, and that Galileo was expected to be among the first to offer its card clients and their issuing banks that choice. SoFiUSD was also expected on the Mastercard Multi-Token Network. The March 3 release framed that as exploration. Six months later, only SoFi Bank's own program is described as live. September does not say Galileo clients can settle in SoFiUSD, and it does not say Multi-Token Network support is live.

Related:NOWPayments has not confirmed where its volume settles

Cardholders still pay on Mastercard rails. SoFiUSD is the settlement leg for the issuing bank, which is also the issuer of the token. The outside-issuer path still sits with Galileo, the platform behind SoFi's Galileo acquisition, and the September text does not say that path is open.

Cash for the merchant, not a token

"In six months, SoFi and Mastercard took stablecoin settlement from an idea to a live product that materially improves how money moves for businesses," said Anthony Noto, CEO of SoFi. "Merchants do not need to hold stablecoins, build new infrastructure or change how they operate. Through SoFi's Big Business Banking platform, any merchant can receive settlement funds instantly in a SoFi Bank account and withdraw to cash around the clock and at zero cost."

Sherri Haymond, Global Head of Digital Commercialization at Mastercard, called it a move "beyond exploration to implementation" that brings "regulated stablecoin settlement into a live production environment." In March, Noto had said issuers and acquirers could "instantly settle transactions, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week." September keeps the round-the-clock, zero-cost cash withdrawal for merchants on Big Business Banking. It does not show other issuers settling that way.

Not a deposit

SoFiUSD is issued by SoFi Bank, N.A., an Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)-regulated, nationally chartered bank. It is fully redeemable 1:1 for U.S. dollars, subject to applicable terms, and supported by reserves consisting primarily of cash. The same release says it is not a deposit, is not insured by the FDIC or SIPC, is not bank guaranteed, is not legal tender and may lose value. SoFi's crypto legal page repeats that SOFID is not FDIC or SIPC insured. March said the coin was "fully reserved 1:1 by cash for immediate redemption capability." September says reserves are "consisting primarily of cash." That is a change in the company's wording, not a published reserve breakdown.

A Federal Reserve capital proposal for stablecoins and U.S. Bank's USBDC, another bank-issued dollar already in production, are the comparisons a treasurer will reach for. SoFi's September text sets out neither capital treatment nor freeze rights. HIFI's raise aims stablecoin rails at repo and cards, the opposite of an issuer settling its own book in a coin it issues. Partior's instant-payment work makes the adjacent point: a faster leg does not retire the bank square-up.

SoFi says it is in active discussions with large U.S. merchants, from multinational retailers to technology platforms, and that the companies will explore cross-border payments and remittances. No merchant is named, and the cautionary statement treats those talks as forward-looking. The tests are whether a merchant outside SoFi's book takes settlement this way, whether Galileo's issuing banks get the March choice, and whether "more than $25 billion" appears as settled volume rather than as the size of the program being migrated.

This article is informational analysis only and is not financial, investment, or trading advice. Cryptocurrencies are highly volatile and can lose substantial value rapidly. Past performance and historical patterns do not guarantee future results. Do your own research and consult a regulated financial adviser before making any investment decision.