1st October 2026
By Shubhii Verma
Coinbase is expanding its business payments infrastructure through a collaboration with Citigroup, combining regulated banking services with stablecoin capabilities to help companies move between traditional finance and digital assets.
Coinbase and Citi Introduce Virtual Accounts for Businesses
The partnership introduces two key offerings. Coinbase has selected Citi’s Virtual Account Wallet, part of the bank’s Banking-as-a-Service platform, to power Coinbase Virtual Accounts. At the same time, Coinbase’s payments infrastructure will enable Citi’s institutional customers using Spring by Citi to accept stablecoin payments.
How Coinbase Virtual Accounts Connect Fiat and Stablecoins
Coinbase Virtual Accounts are designed to provide payments customers with bank-account-like functionality for accepting, holding and sending funds. Incoming fiat currency is automatically converted into stablecoins, while Citi supplies the regulated banking infrastructure supporting the accounts and their connection to the financial system.
The arrangement addresses a challenge businesses face when handling fiat and digital assets at scale. Companies often need separate banking and cryptocurrency systems, creating additional operational, compliance and treasury requirements. Coinbase and Citi aim to provide a more direct connection between the two financial ecosystems.
Citi Merchants Can Accept Stablecoin Payments With Fiat Settlement
The collaboration also brings stablecoin payment acceptance to enterprise merchants through Spring by Citi, Citi’s platform for merchant acquiring, payment gateway technology and settlement. Citi’s institutional clients can accept stablecoin payments at checkout without directly holding or managing digital currencies.
Coinbase’s infrastructure converts the stablecoins into fiat, allowing Citi to settle the proceeds as the bank of record. The service uses Coinbase’s existing payments engine and extends its reach to enterprise merchants through Citi, while targeting a global market that Coinbase says includes more than 150 million stablecoin holders.
For businesses building on Coinbase, the new capabilities could support branded virtual accounts, automated fiat-to-stablecoin conversion and stablecoin payment acceptance with fiat settlement. Merchants can therefore allow customers to pay using stablecoins without taking on the operational requirements of managing those assets themselves.
US Launch and the Partnership’s Global Reach
Coinbase provides the digital-asset and payments infrastructure, while Citi contributes regulated banking capabilities and a global network spanning more than 180 countries and jurisdictions. The initiatives are scheduled to launch first in the United States, with additional capabilities expected in the coming months.
Alec Lovett, Coinbase’s Head of Infrastructure Product, said the collaboration would give fintech companies a compliant bridge between fiat and stablecoins, combining bank-account-like functionality with stablecoin infrastructure.
Brett Tejpaul, Head of Coinbase Institutional, described Citi as a regulated banking partner that could help digital assets move toward everyday commerce.
Debopama Sen, Citi’s Head of Payments, said the partnership reflects efforts to build payments infrastructure that works across traditional and digital payment instruments and networks.
