SoFi Becomes First U.S. Chartered Bank to Offer In-App Crypto Trading
SoFi Technologies has officially launched its new “SoFi Crypto” service, becoming the first nationally chartered U.S. consumer bank to enable in-app cryptocurrency trading. The rollout allows users to purchase, trade, and hold popular digital assets such as BTC (BTC), ETH (ETH), and Solana (SOL) directly through the SoFi app. This move marks a major step in bridging traditional banking and the emerging digital asset ecosystem.
The company said the crypto feature will appear alongside checking, savings, and investment accounts, creating a unified platform for managing both fiat and digital assets. The phased rollout began this week and will expand to all SoFi members in the coming months. Funding for crypto purchases can be made directly from users’ SoFi bank accounts, emphasizing convenience and integrated account management.
Bridging traditional banking and digital finance
With this launch, SoFi aims to strengthen its position as a leading fintech innovator. later than securing its national bank charter in 2022, SoFi has gradually expanded beyond lending and personal finance into a full-service digital banking ecosystem. The new crypto functionality represents a strategic effort to merge traditional finance (TradFi) infrastructure with blockchain-based financial products.
Company executives stated that SoFi Crypto is designed with strict compliance and regulatory standards, aligning with federal banking oversight while enabling access to digital assets. SoFi emphasized that it maintains custody and compliance partnerships to ensure security and regulatory alignment. However, the firm also reminded customers that cryptocurrencies are not FDIC-insured and carry inherent market risks.
Regulatory clarity and industry implications
The timing of SoFi’s crypto launch aligns with a broader wave of regulatory clarity for U.S. financial institutions engaging with digital assets. Updated guidance from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) in 2025 has allowed chartered banks to explore crypto custody, trading, and settlement services within certain compliance frameworks. This regulatory shift has paved the way for banks like SoFi to introduce integrated crypto services without relying on third-party platforms.
Industry analysts suggest that SoFi’s move could pressure other digitally focused banks and neobanks to accelerate their own crypto strategies. As more consumers demand access to crypto assets through regulated channels, banks that fail to offer digital asset services risk losing younger, tech-savvy customers to competitors.
SoFi’s latest product expansion comes amid growing mainstream adoption of blockchain-based financial services. The company’s Q3 2025 earnings highlighted record user growth and a focus on expanding into blockchain and payment technologies. Future plans reportedly include exploring stablecoin issuance and blockchain-based remittance products.
While SoFi’s in-app crypto trading feature signals a pivotal moment for regulated digital asset access, it also raises questions about long-term risk management and volatility exposure. As the platform scales, analysts will monitor metrics such as transaction volume, user engagement, and regulatory compliance.
With SoFi’s entry into crypto trading, the boundary between fintech innovation and traditional banking continues to blur — setting a new standard for how U.S. banks integrate digital assets into everyday financial products.
