BNY Mellon Stays ‘Agile’ on Stablecoin Plans, Focuses on Infrastructure

BNY Mellon is exploring the development of stablecoin infrastructure but has not committed to launching its own token, executives said during the company’s recent earnings discussion on Thursday.

The bank, one of the world’s largest custodians, has brought forward several blockchain-related investments in 2025 — including those that would support real-world asset settlement and tokenized payments. Executives linked that acceleration to a more “constructive” regulatory environment and improved market conditions.

“With the change in administration, and everything going on in the digital asset space, we’ve brought forward some of our investments that previously might have fallen below the line,” said Dermot McDonogh, BNY’s chief financial officer.

When asked whether BNY Mellon plans to issue its own stablecoin, CEO Robin Vince declined to give a definitive answer but said the bank’s strategy is centered on supporting the broader ecosystem rather than launching a branded token.

A BNY-branded stablecoin would likely serve institutional use cases, such as settling tokenized assets or facilitating intraday liquidity. But for now, the bank appears to be focused on building flexible infrastructure rather than launching a product.

“We’re in the infrastructure, capital markets enablement business,” Vince said during the call. “We partner with stablecoins. We enable other people’s stablecoins, and that’s really the heart of our strategy.”

The bank already provides services to some of the largest stablecoin issuers, offering custody, collateral management, settlement, and other back-end infrastructure.

He added that many companies may want to use stablecoins internally without building their own technology stacks, creating demand for infrastructure providers like BNY Mellon. While he left open the possibility of developing systems “right up to the point” of issuing a BNY-branded stablecoin, he emphasized that the firm is more likely to power other stablecoins behind the scenes.

“We’ll remain agile,” Vince said, adding, “I think the sweet spot is enabling the ecosystem — connecting cash, collateral, mobility and infrastructure — rather than issuing something ourselves.”

Separately, the company said it has reallocated approximately $500 million in cost savings this year toward growth initiatives — including digital assets and artificial intelligence. The efficiency gains came from internal streamlining and were redeployed without significantly expanding the company’s expense base.

McDonogh noted that BNY Mellon’s Board, which met earlier this week, has been asking whether the company is investing enough across the board given stronger market conditions. The board’s interest wasn’t specific to digital assets but reflects a broader push to position the firm for long-term growth.