Vantage Bank and Custodia Bank have launched a platform that provides community and regional banks access to tokenized deposits. The platform integrates tokenized deposits and stablecoins into traditional online banking environments, offering a secure and interoperable way to utilize digital assets.
This initiative addresses the interoperability challenges of existing stablecoin providers through a single digital token that functions as both a tokenized deposit and a stablecoin. Member banks and credit unions can offer future-ready financial products to their customers without destabilizing deposits. The platform is open to institutions of all sizes, with member banks maintaining control of their wallets for tokenized deposits and stablecoins while gaining interoperability with other financial institutions. The tokens issued under the system can shift between regulatory categories, deposit and stablecoin, while maintaining oversight.
Vantage Bank and Custodia initially issued tokenized bank deposits in March 2025 and have since conducted additional test transactions in a regulated environment. Custodia is a "permitted payment stablecoin issuer" under the GENIUS Act, allowing consortium member banks to adopt tokenized deposits and stablecoins while remaining compliant.
The platform is built on Custodia's bank-grade blockchain and Infinant's Interlace platform. It offers a turnkey solution that integrates tokenized deposits and stablecoins directly into the traditional online banking environment. The framework is designed to provide institutions and their customers with the efficiencies and security of tokenization while protecting core deposits from disintermediation. Consortium members also benefit from Custodia's patent portfolio for tokenizing U.S. dollars on blockchains, developed since 2020.
Vantage Bank and Custodia successfully executed the first U.S. bank-led tokenization of dollar demand deposits on a permissionless blockchain. The banks issued, transferred, and redeemed Avit stablecoins for a bank customer. The tests demonstrated benefits such as low fees, rapid settlement, programmability, and auditability within a regulated banking environment.
Custodia managed the issuance, custody, monitoring, and reconciliation of the tokens using its Avit Management System. Vantage Bank held the fiat reserves backing the tokens and facilitated traditional settlement services via Fedwire and ACH. The test involved a bank customer transferring Avit tokens into self-custody, transacting with third parties outside the banking system, and redeeming them back into dollar deposits. Both banks complied with Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), anti-money laundering (AML), and Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) rules.
The Custodia and Vantage model emphasizes open participation, allowing any community or regional bank to join, tokenize deposits, and transact securely with peers while preserving deposit stability and full regulatory compliance.
