Citigroup has expanded its partnership with Coinbase to enable institutional clients to accept stablecoin payments at checkout. The service targets multinational companies and large corporations, allowing them to process customer stablecoin payments through Citi's merchant infrastructure while Coinbase handles the underlying digital asset movement and token conversion.
Funds received are automatically converted into dollar-pegged stablecoins held at Coinbase, which currently earn 3.75% annually. This setup allows corporate treasuries to integrate stablecoin payment flows without building proprietary crypto infrastructure.
The partnership operates bidirectionally. Coinbase Institutional clients can also use Citi's banking rails to accept, hold and settle funds through a bank-account-like vehicle, with cash automatically converted to stablecoins.
The expansion builds on an October 2025 collaboration between the two firms focused on fiat on- and off-ramps, payments orchestration and Citi's institutional client access to Coinbase's infrastructure. The latest phase deepens stablecoin integration for commercial checkout flows.
Shahmir Khaliq, Citi's head of services, said the partnership advances the connection between digital assets and traditional economy segments. Brett Tejpaul, head of Coinbase Institutional, added that the collaboration supports faster and cheaper cross-border payments while keeping transactions within traditional banking rails.
Operational details including launch timeline, fee structure, supported tokens and expected volume remain undisclosed.
