Payoneer seeks a US banking licence to underpin a Stablecoin

• Cross-border payments platform Payoneer has applied to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) for a national trust bank charter

• A federal banking licence will enable Payoneer customers to pay and get paid in Stablecoins and hold Stablecoin balances in digital wallets

• Payoneer plans to issue its own US dollar-denominated Stablecoin that its clients can use to settle cross-border payments and hold in digital wallets

Payoneer, the cross-border payments technology platform for small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs), has applied to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) for a federal banking licence so it can enable its customers to pay and get paid in Stablecoins.

Payoneer says it has asked the OCC to grant a national trust bank charter to PAYO Digital Bank, N.A. so that it can build a Stablecoin infrastructure.

The licence will not only enable Payoneer customers to send and receive Stablecoins as payment but allow the company to issue a Stablecoin of its own that customers can use to hold balances on-chain in digital wallets the company will provide. 

A consequence of providing a Stablecoin and digital wallets to customers is the need for a banking licence to custody the assets that back the Stablecoin and the Stablecoins that customers will hold. In short, it will enable Payoneer to act as a digital asset custodian.

The new bank will also have to provide links to the conventional banking system so its customers can purchase Stablecoins (an “on-ramp”) and turn Stablecoins into fiat currencies (an “off-ramp”) in the markets where they operate.

"Payoneer is at the forefront of cross-border payments, and we believe Stablecoins will play a meaningful role in the future of global trade," says John Caplan, Chief Executive Officer of Payoneer. "Through PAYO Digital Bank, we aim to provide customers with a trusted and regulated way to leverage the latest payment innovations as part of their global financial operations."

Payoneer was encouraged to invest in Stablecoin infrastructure by the passage of the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act (GENIUS) passed in July 2025. This authorises Stablecoin issuance in the United States, provided the Stablecoin is backed one-to-one by liquid assets such as cash, deposits, Treasury bills and money market funds.

The company believes a US dollar Stablecoin will prove attractive to its international customers, many of which are already using the US dollar to settle cross-border payments.

"Payoneer's nearly two million customers are at the epicentre of global adoption, where Stablecoins can deliver meaningful improvements to how global trade happens," adds Rob Morgan, the proposed CEO of PAYO Digital Bank, "PAYO Digital Bank will help us offer global SMEs an integrated, business-grade Stablecoin solution that will accelerate payments, add transparency, and improve access to markets."