Newsletter
- SoFi launched SoFi Earn ( SOFIE ), calling it the first tokenized deposit product issued by a national bank to consumers.
- This product targets idle digital dollars, offering interest earnings and insurance protection that stablecoins typically do not provide.
- This is the fifth encryption product launched by SoFi in less than a year, continuing its strategy that includes resuming encrypted transaction services and launching the stablecoin SoFiUSD.
SoFi is providing customers with a way to earn bank-level interest on digital dollars without sacrificing the speed of encrypted asset transfers. The company has launched what it claims to be the first tokenized deposit product issued by a national bank to consumers.
SoFi announced on Thursday that the product, named SoFi Earn, has a trading code of SOFIE. Each token represents a $1 deposit held in SoFi Bank. Holders can earn an annualized yield of 4.40%, and the relevant funds are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation of the United States (FDIC) within the applicable limits, which is a key difference from ordinary stablecoins.
When members wish to utilize this funds, they can convert SOFIE to SoFiUSD (a stablecoin issued by the bank) at a 1:1 ratio. Subsequently, they can use it to purchase crypto assets within the SoFi application or transfer dollars around the clock through blockchain channels.
This product targets a clear market niche. Stablecoins have become a popular way to store digital dollars, but many of them do not pay interest nor offer deposit insurance. SoFi cites research from the Federal Reserve that indicates approximately $64 billion—about 21% of the stablecoin market—is in forgotten or inactive wallets. The company describes SOFIE as a way to generate continuous income from this portion of funds before they are utilized.
"There is too much capital in a dormant state within the digital asset ecosystem," said CEO Anthony Noto in a statement. He believes that this product combines "the profitability and security of bank deposits with the speed and utility of digital assets."
SoFi Earn is the fifth encryption product launched by the company in less than a year, and it is part of its active efforts to expand its digital currency ecosystem.
SoFi will return to the cryptocurrency trading business by the end of 2025. The company had previously withdrawn from this business several years ago and has now become the first nationally licensed bank in the United States to offer this service to consumers. Members can currently trade more than 40 different tokens.
Thereafter, the company launched SoFiUSD. SoFi referred to it as the first stablecoin issued by a national bank in the United States. This stablecoin has been launched on Ethereum and Solana, and is currently also used for settling the entire bank card project of SoFi through the Mastercard network.
Prior to this, SoFi had already launched corporate banking services for digital assets and reached a stablecoin collaboration with the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken. This move also allows SoFi to further penetrate the field where banks and fintech companies are competing to incorporate blockchain-based dollars into regulated products.
By packaging deposits that can generate income and are protected by insurance into tokens that are as liquid as stablecoins, SoFi is betting on consumers' desire to have both.
