SoFi eyes return to crypto with stablecoin ambitions amid regulatory shift under Trump

Two years after pausing crypto offerings, SoFi Technologies plans a reentry focused on trading, tokenized lending, and a potential FDIC-insured stablecoin, citing friendlier conditions under a Trump-led regulatory environment.

The digital finance firm reported first-quarter earnings that beat estimates earlier this week and said it wants to offer crypto services within the next six to 24 months. SoFi stopped offering those services in 2023 as it became a regulated bank.

SoFi's management sees the opportunity to reintroduce crypto onto the platform for things like tokenized secured lending, trading, and stablecoins,  which CEO Anthony Noto sees as a big opportunity.

"We think it's a technology more than anything else," Noto said Tuesday on CNBC, "and we can use it to allow people to pay easier, at lower cost, and pay faster."

Mizuho Securities also recently hosted an investor lunch with Noto and CFO Chris Lapointe, noting that the extent to which crypto, blockchain, and stablecoins.

"Specifically, there is now more clarity on gaining approval to provide crypto services as a financial institution," analysts led by Dan Dolev wrote in a Thursday note to clients. "As a bank, the CEO highlighted that SOFI could offer an FDIC-insured 'deposit coin', providing interest to the user for holding the stablecoin (which isn't available today)."

Dolev said traditional banks pose a limited competitive threat, given their lower cost of deposits. However, stablecoins present unique advantages as they carry no interchange fees, which Noto sees as an incentive for merchants, especially when paired with the potential to pay users interest for holding them.

"If we custody the cryptocurrency, we can provide a secure loan against that currency," Noto told CNBC.