"Use cases remain unclear": Wells Fargo's CEO doubts stablecoins on earnings day, even as the bank builds for them

Wells Fargo's chief executive is not yet sold on stablecoins, but his bank is getting ready for them. Speaking on the bank's third-quarter earnings call on Tuesday, October 13, Charlie Scharf said use cases for stablecoins in the US "remain unclear," and added that Wells Fargo is building solutions to be prepared as opportunities potentially unfold, PYMNTS and crypto.news reported.

Scharf put more weight on tokenized deposits, digital versions of ordinary bank deposits that move on a blockchain. He said the bank launched them last month on its own blockchain platform for corporate and commercial clients, and that those clients will be able to move money 24 hours a day, seven days a week, according to PYMNTS. He named transfers between a company's own accounts and across borders as the main use.

The comments come six weeks after Wells Fargo and 20 other financial institutions said they plan to form a company to issue a stablecoin, PYMNTS reported. Crypto.news reported that the group is aiming for a launch in the first half of 2027, with a US dollar token first.

For crypto, the message from one of the biggest US banks is mixed: heavy building, little conviction yet that consumers need a stablecoin. Scharf spoke on the same day the bank reported net income of about $5.95 billion for the quarter, crypto.news reported.