U.S. banks remain cautious on stablecoins, with most institutions still in observation mode as they wait for clear direction from regulators and internal alignment before moving forward, according to a new survey from S&P Global Market Intelligence. Smaller institutions are expected to rely heavily on core and payments providers to participate, creating an opportunity for vendors that can help banks build operational readiness early.
Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman meanwhile confirmed that regulators have begun direct discussions with large banks around emerging AI tools, S&P wrote. Bowman also signaled a more flexible supervisory approach to AI and third-party risk management, emphasizing that regulatory expectations should remain tailored to institutions of different sizes while avoiding barriers to innovation.
A separate S&P article noted that first-quarter earnings results drove significant stock swings among individual U.S. banks even as the broader sector remained relatively stable, with investors reacting sharply to beats and misses.