BofA CEO warns that interest-bearing stablecoins could drain $6 trillion from U.S. banks.

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Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said his bank will be “fine” if stablecoins become a larger part of mainstream finance, but warned that the broader banking system could be harmed by the “possibility of $6 trillion in deposits” moving into stablecoins and stablecoin-linked products offering yield-like returns, as these could reduce lending capacity and push up borrowing costs.

Moynihan spoke about stablecoins during a Bank of America investor conference as the financial institution presented its Q4 2025 results.

RBC Capital Markets analyst Gerard Cassidy asked whether U.S. lawmakers would close what he called a “looming loophole,” one that could allow stablecoin deposits to effectively pay interest, and what that might mean for banks as the GENIUS Act signed into law last year reshapes the rules of the dollar-pegged crypto market. The Senate has been debating provisions adjusting that loophole in a crypto market structure bill in recent weeks, though progress stalled after Coinbase withdrew its support.

The GENIUS Act aimed to establish a federal framework for stablecoin issuers, but banks have argued it should have included stronger guardrails preventing stablecoins from functioning like interest-bearing deposit substitutes.

Moynihan’s concerns echo those of the American Bankers Association (ABA), whose community of more than 100 community financial institutions recently urged U.S. senators to close what they referred to as “dangerous loopholes” in stablecoin legislation through the newer bill. In their Jan. 5 letter to the Senate, they said stablecoin issuers are increasingly finding ways to offer yield-like incentives, despite a statutory ban on interest payments from issuers directly, threatening to siphon savings away from banks that rely on deposits to fund loans to households and small businesses.

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