Author: Deng Tong, Golden Finance
In 2025, the regulatory landscape of the crypto industry becomes clearer, traditional finance deeply penetrates, and technological iterations accelerate. Every key moment is inseparable from core figures who either lead policy directions, guide institutions into the market, tackle technical challenges, or stir the market.
What crypto actions are traditional giants like BlackRock, JPMorgan, Visa, and Mastercard taking in 2025?
I. BlackRock: Promoting ETFs, Optimistic about RWA
In 2025, BlackRock strategically promotes the layout of crypto assets and tokenization: including expanding its ETF series and researching asset tokenization.
1. Promoting ETFs
At the beginning of 2025, BlackRock identifies Bitcoin as one of its core investment themes for the year, emphasizing its "long-term investment value," and continues to promote the adoption of its iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) ETF among institutional investors.
On February 26, BlackRock transferred approximately 1,800 Bitcoins (about $160 million) to Coinbase Prime custodial services. This on-chain transfer event attracted market attention.
In the first half of 2025, BlackRock's investment portfolio grew by $23.91 billion, increasing from $54.77 billion on January 1 to $78.67 billion on June 30. The appreciation of Bitcoin contributed $23.3 billion, while Ethereum contributed $678.9 million.
According to the "2025 Q3 Cryptocurrency Market Report" released by Finbold, driven by unprecedented inflows into Ethereum, BlackRock's cryptocurrency investment portfolio surged by $22.46 billion in Q3 2025. The report noted that BlackRock accelerated its active layout in digital assets in Q3 2025. From July 1 to September 30, BlackRock's on-chain cryptocurrency holdings increased from $79.63 billion to $102.09 billion, a quarter-on-quarter growth of 28.2%. This shift marked the first time Ethereum surpassed Bitcoin in BlackRock's quarterly portfolio growth.
As of 2025, IBIT ranked sixth among all ETFs with over $25 billion in inflows. The top fund by inflows was Vanguard's S&P 500 ETF (VOO) with $145 billion, while the 25th was iShares' S&P 100 ETF (OEF) with $10 billion in inflows.
2. Optimistic about RWA
BlackRock executives have repeatedly stated that asset tokenization is an important trend in the next financial revolution, reflecting their optimism about incorporating traditional assets into on-chain formats in the medium to long term. BlackRock's CEO Larry Fink firmly believes that the next major transformation in global finance will come from the tokenization of traditional assets, including stocks, bonds, and real estate. BlackRock views tokenization as an opportunity to bring new investors into mainstream financial products through digital means.
For more details, see “BlackRock: How Tokenization Will Change Finance”
II. JPMorgan: Issuing JPMD, Entering Public Chains, CEO's Attitude Reversal
JPMorgan's CEO once held a strong critical stance against cryptocurrencies, primarily denying their value and condemning illegal uses. In 2025, there was a shift in attitude. JPMorgan itself made significant strides towards public chains in 2025.
1. Issuing JPMD
In June, JPMorgan's blockchain division Kinexys piloted the issuance of JPMD, bringing institutional finance on-chain, marking an important step in the development of digital currency. JPMD is a licensed dollar deposit token used for real-time institutional payments on Base (an Ethereum Layer 2 blockchain built within Coinbase). JPMD aims to support near real-time peer-to-peer transfers between Base wallets, allowing institutional clients to transfer funds flexibly, securely, and efficiently, minimizing delays. By reducing transaction friction, clients can enhance operational efficiency and support real-time financial decision-making.
2. Entering Public Chains
On July 30, JPMorgan reached a strategic partnership with Coinbase, the largest crypto exchange in the U.S. The collaboration includes allowing Chase Bank users to directly link their bank accounts with Coinbase for crypto asset operations and providing users with a more convenient way to purchase/trade cryptocurrencies. This is an important bridge between JPMorgan's financial services and mainstream crypto trading platforms.
On November 12, JPMorgan began offering a deposit token called JPM Coin to institutional clients, a move to expand its digital asset business. On December 18, JPMorgan deployed JPM Coin on Coinbase's Base blockchain, marking the Wall Street giant's first large-scale entry into the public chain ecosystem.
On December 15, JPMorgan officially launched its first tokenized money market fund, "My OnChain Net Yield Fund" (abbreviated as MONY). This private fund will operate on the Ethereum blockchain and is open to qualified investors. JPMorgan will inject $100 million of its own funds as startup capital for the fund.
3. CEO's Attitude Reversal
JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon was once a strong critic of cryptocurrencies. In September 2017, Dimon publicly called Bitcoin a "fraud," warning company traders that they would be fired for trading Bitcoin, linking it to Ponzi schemes and speculative bubbles, and deeming investors foolish. However, in October this year, Dimon publicly acknowledged that crypto, blockchain, and stablecoins are "real and will be widely used," and plans to allow institutional clients to use Bitcoin and Ethereum as collateral for loans by the end of 2025 (with third-party custody).
III. Visa: Seizing Stablecoin Opportunities
For Visa, 2025 is a crucial time to seize stablecoin opportunities.
Visa's cryptocurrency business head Cuy Sheffield has stated that he is not worried about the rise of stablecoins posing risks to traditional payment companies, even though stablecoins provide consumers with a new payment method without credit cards. This payment giant views the rise of stablecoins as an opportunity. Cuy Sheffield pointed out that stablecoins do not solve many retail payment issues, as data shows that most stablecoin transaction volumes come from high-value transfers rather than retail transactions. He added that the opportunity for stablecoins mainly lies in emerging market economies outside the U.S., which have a demand for dollars but limited access to them.
On May 1, Baanx partnered with Visa to launch a stablecoin payment card linked to self-custody wallets, initially supporting USDC issued by Circle. This card "allows cardholders to spend USDC directly from their crypto wallets," transferring USDC balances in real-time to Baanx via smart contracts at the time of authorization, which is then converted into fiat currency for payment.
On October 28, Visa announced plans to support multiple stablecoins. Visa CEO Ryan McInerney stated during the Q4 earnings call, "We are adding support for four stablecoins that operate on four unique blockchains, corresponding to two currencies; we can accept these stablecoins and convert them into over 25 traditional fiat currencies."
On November 12, Visa announced the official launch of a stablecoin payment pilot program, allowing creators, freelancers, and businesses to receive payments directly in USDC issued by Circle through Visa Direct, enabling cross-border instant settlement. Visa stated that during the pilot phase, businesses can initiate payments in fiat currency in the U.S., while recipients can choose to receive USDC directly, with funds arriving in minutes, providing convenience for users in areas with currency fluctuations or limited bank access.
On December 16, Visa began supporting U.S. financial institutions to use USDC on Solana for transaction settlements, with Cross River Bank and Lead Bank being the first institutions to use this service. As a partner of Circle's Arc blockchain, Visa will also provide support after Arc goes live.
Visa believes that stablecoins are expected to drive traditional financial institutions to migrate part of the $40 trillion global credit market to a blockchain programmable system, thereby changing the credit landscape. Banks and financial institutions should understand how programmable money reshapes the credit market to seize potential opportunities.
IV. PayPal: Seizing Stablecoin Opportunities
On August 7, 2023, PayPal's stablecoin PYUSD was officially launched. For PayPal, 2025 is the year to implement PYUSD in more application scenarios.
In early February this year, PayPal planned to increase the adoption rate of its stablecoin PYUSD in 2025 by launching a bill payment product that allows its more than 20 million small and medium-sized merchants to choose to pay suppliers using PYUSD. Additionally, PayPal plans to add PYUSD as an option for global payments through Hyperwallet, a service that helps organizations send bulk payments to contractors, freelancers, or sellers worldwide. PayPal CEO Alex Chriss stated, "We have been talking about blockchain for ten years—these concepts will never become a reality until you actually start using them. I think that is what we are achieving."
On April 24, Coinbase expanded its partnership with PayPal to accelerate the adoption, distribution, and use of PayPal's dollar stablecoin (PYUSD). Coinbase supports a 1:1 exchange of PYUSD with the dollar through its custody and trading platform, enhancing the utility of PYUSD and exploring new on-chain use cases for PYUSD.
On April 29, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) terminated its investigation into PayPal's dollar stablecoin PYUSD, taking no enforcement action. This eliminated regulatory uncertainties for PYUSD.
On September 19, PayPal announced that its dollar stablecoin PYUSD would expand to nine new blockchains through the LayerZero cross-chain protocol, including Abstract, Aptos, Avalanche, Ink, Sei, Stable, Tron, and automatically integrated Berachain and Flow.
On September 22, PayPal made a strategic investment in Stablechain, allowing users to conduct business and financial transactions using PayPal USD (PYUSD) on Stablechain. On December 18, PYUSD officially launched on the Stable mainnet.
V. Mastercard: Seizing Stablecoin Opportunities
For Mastercard, 2025 is an important year to transition from the experimental phase to providing practical crypto solutions.
On April 9, Kraken announced a partnership with Mastercard to launch a crypto debit card. Kraken will introduce physical and digital debit cards for everyday transactions using cryptocurrencies and stablecoins. On April 29, Mastercard partnered with OKX to launch the "OKX Card."
On April 29, Mastercard promoted allowing consumers to use stablecoins for purchases and merchants to accept stablecoin payments. "Mastercard is providing a comprehensive 360-degree solution that allows consumers and businesses to use stablecoins as easily as they would use currency in their bank accounts."
On October 19, Mastercard submitted a trademark application for "Virtual Asset Payment Processing."
On November 5, Mastercard partnered with Ripple and Gemini to explore using the RLUSD stablecoin on the XRPL blockchain for settling card transactions. This collaboration is one of the first cases of regulated U.S. banks using public blockchains and regulated stablecoins to settle traditional card transactions.
On December 16, Mastercard allied with the Abu Dhabi ADI Foundation to advance stablecoin settlements, stablecoin payment cards, and asset tokenization applications in the Middle East, while NEO PAY (UAE) and INFINIOS (Bahrain) joined its stablecoin settlement program.
VI. Goldman Sachs: Layout for Stablecoins, Focus on ETFs
On April 30, Goldman Sachs' head of digital assets, Mathew McDermott, stated that clear regulations would make it easier for large institutions to deploy capital in the cryptocurrency space, driving its scaling development. Goldman Sachs plans to expand digital asset trading activities, explore crypto lending, and heavily invest in tokenization. An increasing number of Goldman Sachs clients are eager to participate more actively in digital asset trading, and Goldman Sachs will focus on business implementation, hoping to obtain various regulatory approvals.
1. Layout for Stablecoins
On October 10, Reuters reported that several global banks are collaborating to plan a joint stablecoin initiative, including Santander, Bank of America, Barclays, BNP Paribas, Citi, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, MUFG, TD Bank, and UBS.
On October 11, a group of banks, including Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, Deutsche Bank, and Citi, is exploring the issuance of stablecoins pegged to major G7 currencies (such as the U.S. dollar, euro, and yen). The project aims to issue a 1:1 reserve-backed digital currency that provides stable payment assets on a public blockchain while adhering to regulatory requirements and best risk management practices. This move aims to explore the market competitive advantages brought by digital assets.
2. Focus on ETFs
On December 2, Goldman Sachs agreed to acquire Innovator Capital Management for approximately $2 billion, incorporating this issuer of "defined outcome" exchange-traded funds (ETFs) into its asset management portfolio, which includes a structured fund for Bitcoin. The transaction is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2026, adding approximately $28 billion in regulated assets to Goldman Sachs' asset management division.
VII. Citi: Layout for Stablecoins, Exploring Crypto Custody
Citi's 2025 digital asset report noted that by 2030, the scale of tokenized assets could reach $4-5 trillion, with stablecoins and tokenized deposits becoming core drivers. Citi believes that blockchain is not a replacement for banks but rather a new "settlement layer" for banks.
1. Layout for Stablecoins
On July 16, Citi CEO Jane Fraser stated that Citi is exploring the possibility of issuing stablecoins.
On October 11, Citi joined a group of European banks developing a euro stablecoin.
On October 27, Citi Group announced a partnership with Coinbase to jointly explore stablecoin payment solutions for institutional clients. This collaboration aims to leverage stablecoins to enhance cross-border and corporate payment systems, improving transaction efficiency.
2. Exploring Crypto Custody
In February this year, Bloomberg reported that Citi would explore cryptocurrency custody services.
On October 14, reports indicated that Citi Bank plans to launch crypto asset custody services in 2026, according to an executive's interview. As Wall Street giants continue to expand their presence in the digital currency space, Citi's move shows that traditional financial institutions are accelerating their entry into this field. Biswarup Chatterjee, Citi's Global Head of Services Collaboration and Innovation, stated that the bank has been developing crypto custody services for the past two to three years and has made substantial progress. "We are exploring multiple avenues. We hope to launch a trusted custody solution in the coming quarters for our asset management clients and other institutional clients."
VIII. Google: Blockchain as the Foundation for AI, Enhancing Stablecoin Compatibility
AI + blockchain and traditional payments + stablecoins are Google's two major focuses in the crypto space in 2025.
1. Blockchain as the Foundation for AI Agents
On August 31, Ethereum and Google developers jointly proposed a new initiative aimed at making blockchain the foundation for the AI agent economy. Tech giants like Google and Amazon are betting on AI agents, while Ethereum developers believe their blockchain has unique advantages in supporting this new machine economy. Ethereum core developer Davide Crapis has proposed the ERC-8004 standard, which aims to enable discovery, verification, and transactions between AI agents. Supporters argue that Ethereum's payment channels, digital identity tools, and scalable multi-layer architecture make it the most efficient infrastructure for an AI-driven economy.
2. Enhancing Stablecoin Compatibility
On September 16, Google released a new open-source payment protocol designed to make it easier for different AI applications to send and receive funds, supporting not only traditional payment methods like credit and debit cards but also stablecoins. To enhance compatibility with stablecoins, Google partnered with cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, which has built its own AI and cryptocurrency payment solutions. Additionally, Google collaborated with other cryptocurrency companies, including the Ethereum Foundation, and reportedly consulted with over 60 organizations, including Salesforce, American Express, and Etsy, to develop other elements of the new payment protocol.
IX. SBI: Entering Stablecoins, Tokenized Stocks
1. Entering Stablecoins
On March 4, SBI VC Trade announced that it had completed the first registration for stablecoin trading in Japan. After obtaining approval, it began processing USDC transactions on March 12. The company can provide buying, selling, and deposit services for USDC to individual and corporate clients, requiring collateral in dollars equal to or greater than the USDC deposited by clients. SBI Group's new trust bank will assume the role of trust collateral.
On August 22, Ripple partnered with Japan's SBI Group to plan the launch of the RLUSD stablecoin in Japan in the first quarter of 2026.
On December 16, Japanese blockchain infrastructure company Startale Group and Japan's financial group SBI Holdings plan to launch a fully regulated stablecoin pegged to the yen by the second quarter of 2026 to support global settlements. The two parties will collaborate to develop this digital currency based on a new agreement.
2. Tokenized Stocks
On August 22, SBI announced a strategic partnership with crypto infrastructure company Startale Group to jointly launch an on-chain tokenized stock trading platform. This platform will combine SBI's financial ecosystem with Startale's blockchain infrastructure, supporting 24/7 trading of tokenized stocks, providing faster cross-border settlements and fractional ownership features. The platform will also integrate decentralized finance protocols and include features such as account abstraction, institutional custody, and real-time compliance monitoring.
X. Samsung: End-to-End Crypto Services
On October 3, Samsung partnered with Coinbase to provide access to Coinbase One services for 75 million Galaxy device users in the U.S. This is Coinbase's largest consumer-facing distribution ever and represents Samsung's biggest move in the crypto space. Users can access Coinbase directly through Samsung Wallet, enjoying zero transaction fees and higher staking rewards without needing to download additional apps or transfer funds. Samsung Pay will also integrate with Coinbase accounts, allowing users to link crypto assets for payments. This plan will expand to international markets in the future.
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