TLDR
Several banks are piloting stablecoins, notably a 10?bank EU consortium and Japans top three megabanks, while in the US unnamed majors are running pilots via Coinbase.
- Europe: ING, UniCredit, BNP Paribas and others formed Qivalis to launch a euro stablecoin in H2 2026. See the Qivalis consortium.
- Japan: MUFG, SMBC and Mizuho received approval to pilot a bank?backed stablecoin. Nikkei reports the megabanks trial.
- United States: Coinbase says major US banks are piloting stablecoin, custody and trading initiatives, without naming them. See the report.
Deep Dive
1. Europe Qivalis
A 10?bank consortium created Qivalis to issue a MiCA?compliant euro stablecoin, targeting the second half of 2026, as reported in the notice above. Members include ING, UniCredit, Banca Sella, KBC, DekaBank, Danske Bank, SEB, CaixaBank, Raiffeisen Bank International and BNP Paribas.
The group is applying for an Electronic Money Institution license under the Dutch Central Bank and frames the project as European monetary autonomy for on?chain commerce. The focus is a fully regulated euro alternative to USD?dominant stablecoins referenced in the report above.
Europe is aligning on a bank?issued, regulated euro token that could shift some stablecoin activity away from USD rails if liquidity and listings follow.
2. Japan Megabank Pilots
Japans largest banks MUFG, SMBC and Mizuho have regulatory clearance to run a joint stablecoin pilot, per the Nikkei article above. In parallel, Sony Bank plans a USD?pegged stablecoin for US use cases in its ecosystem, also covered in the same report.
These efforts sit within Japans renewed framework for asset?backed tokens and stablecoin issuance, aiming at faster settlement and integrated consumer payment flows.
With megabanks and a licensed bank like Sony Bank moving, yen and dollar tokens tied to Japanese institutions could gain trusted distribution and real retail hooks.
3. United States Bank Pilots
Coinbases CEO said major US banks are actively piloting stablecoins, custody and trading with the exchange, but he did not name specific institutions in the report above. The focus appears to be payment rails, settlement and custody plumbing rather than branded bank coins at this stage.
Given US banks regulatory posture, many are testing via third?party infrastructure. The next proof points would be named partners, public timelines and early production payment corridors.
US banks are experimenting behind the scenes. Watch for formal partner disclosures or product rollouts before assuming broad client availability.
Conclusion
Banks piloting stablecoins today cluster around regulated, institution?led models. Europe is organizing a multi?bank euro token, Japans megabanks are trialing a bank?backed coin with a parallel Sony Bank USD token plan, and US majors are testing via Coinbase without naming names yet. The key variable is execution to liquidity and real payment corridors, which will determine whether these pilots become everyday rails.
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