SoFi Launches Yield-Bearing Tokenized Bank Deposit With Stablecoin Conversion

TL;DR: SoFi says its new SOFIE tokenized deposit represents money held at SoFi Bank, advertises 4.40% APY subject to terms, and can convert to SoFiUSD for blockchain transfers. SoFi is offering consumers a new way to hold a dollar balance that earns bank-deposit interest while remaining a short step away from on-chain transfers. Its latest product, SoFi Earn, introduces a tokenized deposit called SOFIE and a conversion route into its SoFiUSD stablecoin. In Thursday's announcement, the company says each SOFIE represents one dollar on deposit at SoFi Bank. It advertises a 4.40% annual percentage yield, subject to the product's eligibility requirements and changing rate terms, and says eligible underlying deposits carry federal deposit insurance within applicable FDIC limits. Two forms of digital dollars with different protections The distinction between SOFIE and SoFiUSD is the point of the design. SOFIE is presented as a tokenized claim on a bank deposit. When customers want to buy crypto or send money over blockchain rails, they can convert SOFIE into SoFiUSD at a one-to-one ratio. That conversion may look seamless in an app, but the instruments should not be treated as legally ide...