TheBlock
Citi is expanding its partnership with Coinbase to bring stablecoin payment options to corporate clients, with the initiatives launching first in the U.S. The firms first announced their collaboration in October 2025, focusing on fiat-to-crypto payment infrastructure.
Coinbase will use Citi's Virtual Account Wallet to power its Virtual Accounts. Customers will be able to accept, hold and pay fiat, while incoming funds are automatically converted into stablecoins. Separately, Citi institutional clients will be able to accept stablecoin payments through Spring by Citi, with Coinbase handling the payment rails and converting digital assets into fiat for settlement.
Why it matters
The setup is designed to give businesses bank-account-like functionality while letting them accept stablecoin payments without directly holding or managing digital assets. Citi and Coinbase are connecting traditional corporate payment services with stablecoin infrastructure, with each firm playing a defined role in conversion and settlement.
Citi's head of payments, Debopama Sen, said the goal is to build payments infrastructure that works across traditional and digital instruments and networks. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong previously described stablecoins as tools to update the global financial system and said the firms were working to improve their utility and digital asset adoption.
Market impact
The initial U.S. rollout adds a corporate payments use case for stablecoins, while keeping merchants' interaction with digital assets behind conversion and settlement services. Citi clients can receive stablecoin payments that convert to fiat, and Coinbase customers can route incoming fiat into stablecoins through Virtual Accounts.
The partnership's significance will depend on how businesses use the services as they launch. For payments providers and stablecoin infrastructure firms, the arrangement puts a major bank and crypto exchange together on tools aimed at corporate payment flows.
Frequently asked questions
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Where will Citi and Coinbase launch the corporate stablecoin payment services first?
The initiatives are launching first in the U.S.
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How will Coinbase's role work with Citi's Virtual Account Wallet?
Coinbase will use the Virtual Account Wallet to power its Virtual Accounts, where incoming fiat funds can be automatically converted into stablecoins.
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How can Citi institutional clients accept stablecoin payments?
Clients will be able to accept them through Spring by Citi. Coinbase will handle the stablecoin payment rails and convert digital assets into fiat for settlement.
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Do businesses need to directly hold or manage stablecoins to use the services?
No. The services are designed to let businesses use stablecoin payments without directly holding or managing digital assets.
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What is the broader purpose of the Citi and Coinbase partnership?
The firms aim to connect traditional corporate payment services with digital payment infrastructure, including stablecoin rails and conversion between fiat and digital assets.
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