Banking Circle is expanding its role in digital asset infrastructure after securing a Crypto Asset Service Provider licence in Luxembourg, launching a regulated stablecoin settlement service aimed at institutional investors and payment companies. The new offering allows clients to move seamlessly between traditional fiat currencies and blockchain-based stablecoins, combining the always-on capabilities of digital assets with the compliance and risk controls expected from a regulated bank. As stablecoins increasingly gain traction in cross-border payments and treasury management, Banking Circle is positioning its infrastructure to support faster and more flexible settlement across both traditional and digital financial rails.
Regulated stablecoin settlement for institutional payments
The new service enables institutional investors and payment firms to convert between fiat currencies and major stablecoins in real time. Banking Circle said the infrastructure supports both fiat-to-stablecoin and stablecoin-to-fiat settlements while maintaining the compliance, security and risk management standards expected from a regulated banking environment.
The launch follows the company receiving a CASP licence from Luxembourg’s financial regulator, allowing it to formally provide digital asset services within a regulated framework.
The platform currently supports several stablecoins including Circle’s USDC, Paxos-issued USDG and Banking Circle’s own euro-backed stablecoin EURI. By integrating stablecoins directly into its banking infrastructure, the company aims to address long-standing inefficiencies in cross-border settlement systems while enabling transactions that can operate continuously, rather than within traditional banking hours.
Banking Circle’s infrastructure already supports more than 750 payment companies, financial institutions and marketplaces. According to the company, these clients collectively process and convert more than $1.7 trillion annually through its payments and banking network.
Kirit Bhatia, Chief Digital Asset Officer at Banking Circle, said stablecoins represent a natural extension of the firm’s financial infrastructure, helping reduce transaction costs while improving settlement speed. Through direct integration with the bank’s core platform, institutional users can move between fiat currencies and supported stablecoins such as USDC, USDG and EURI with immediate settlement and full regulatory traceability.
Growing institutional interest in euro stablecoins
The broader euro stablecoin ecosystem has also begun to expand as regulated financial institutions test blockchain-based settlement infrastructure.
In 2023, French banking group Société Générale launched its euro stablecoin EURCV through its digital asset subsidiary SG-FORGE on the Ethereum blockchain. More recently, Swiss digital asset bank Sygnum integrated EURCV into its B2B platform in early 2025 to support institutional clients and partner banks exploring blockchain-based financial services.
Laust Bertelsen, Chief Executive Officer of Banking Circle, described the CASP licence as a significant milestone for both the company and the wider payments ecosystem. He noted that stablecoins are rapidly evolving from experimental digital assets into operational infrastructure used for cross-border settlement and treasury management.
Industry research also suggests the scale of stablecoin usage could expand dramatically over the coming decade. Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis estimates that stablecoin transaction volumes could reach $1.5 quadrillion in the next ten years, potentially exceeding the volume currently processed through global cross-border payment networks. That figure could grow even further by 2035, particularly as significant intergenerational wealth transfers move capital into digitally native financial systems.
What this means for the industry
- Regulated banks are increasingly integrating stablecoins into mainstream financial infrastructure rather than leaving the space to crypto-native firms
- Stablecoins are emerging as a viable alternative settlement rail for cross-border payments and treasury operations
- Regulatory frameworks such as CASP licences are becoming essential for banks seeking to operate digital asset services in Europe
- Institutional adoption of euro-denominated stablecoins is gradually expanding as financial institutions test blockchain-based settlement models
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