Standard Chartered unveils bank-led USDC minting service

Standard Chartered and Circle launched a bank-led USDC minting and redemption service for institutions via Dubai’s DIFC, offering integrated access and planning global expansion.

Standard Chartered, in partnership with Circle, has launched an integrated service for institutional clients to mint and redeem the USDC stablecoin. This service is initially available through the bank’s Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) operations. Standard Chartered becomes the first global systemically important bank (G-SIB) to offer regulated, bank-led USDC minting and redemption. Eligible institutions can now access USDC through a single onboarding process, eliminating the need to open separate accounts with Circle. The service merges fiat banking, digital asset infrastructure, and public blockchain networks, supporting use cases such as on-chain settlement, treasury, and liquidity management. Standard Chartered manages the underlying flows with Circle and plans to expand this offering to additional markets, subject to regulatory approvals and market conditions. This marks a significant step in bridging traditional banking with digital asset services.