JPMorgan Adds Pound Support to Blockchain Payments Network Kinexys

JPMorgan has added British pound-denominated accounts to its blockchain-based payments network, Kinexys, broadening its reach beyond U.S. dollar and euro transactions as demand for non-dollar digital settlement options increases.

The expansion targets a longstanding gap in the $230 billion stablecoin market, which is almost entirely dominated by dollar-backed tokens. Kinexys—originally launched as JPM Coin in 2019—enables JPMorgan’s institutional clients to transfer funds between accounts and settle foreign exchange trades 24/7.

Initial users of the pound-denominated service include LSEG’s SwapAgent and commodities giant Trafigura. The move follows the addition of euro support last year and reflects growing interest among corporates in blockchain-based settlement outside the dollar sphere.

Kinexys processes about $2 billion in transactions daily, a small portion of JPMorgan’s $10 trillion daily payments volume but a notable sign of institutional adoption of blockchain tools in traditional finance.

According to Naveen Mallela, global co-head of JPMorgan’s Onyx platform, 80% of current Kinexys activity still revolves around dollars, but client demand for pound settlements is gaining traction.

JP Morgan Chase revealed last year that more clients had already begun using its own cryptocurrency to instantly send and settle payments around the world. However, the coin is available only for international payments for large corporate clients, that have undergone regulatory checks.

The New York-based lender started trials of its Kinexys in conjunction with corporate clients with the ultimate aim of speeding up transactions, such as cross-border payments and corporate debt issuance.

The development adds to a broader trend of financial institutions experimenting with fiat-backed digital currencies as an alternative to U.S.-centric stablecoins. French bank Société Générale, for example, has already launched euro-denominated stablecoins to serve this growing demand.

JPMorgan analysts suggest that impending stablecoin regulations could pose challenges for Tether. They argue that such regulations are likely to favor stablecoins offering greater transparency and adherence to emerging KYC and AML standards, thereby reducing Tether’s appeal. This regulatory shift could also affect the decentralized finance (DeFi) sector, where USDT plays a critical role as a form of collateral and liquidity.