SoFi Reintroduces Crypto Capabilities to Financial Services Offering

SoFi says it has added “crypto-powered capabilities” to its digital financial services.

The company announced the new addition to its services Wednesday (June 25), saying it would be the first of many new cryptocurrency and blockchain-related offerings.

“More people are turning to crypto than ever before to pay, invest, and transfer money faster, safer, and for a fraction of the cost of traditional methods. Today, it is estimated that nearly 3 in 10 American adults own crypto assets,” SoFi said in a news release.

“Growing demand, fueled by expanded institutional investment and emerging regulatory clarity, is expected to drive more mainstream adoption of crypto and likely the start of another technology super cycle.”

SoFi is characterizing the new crypto offerings as a “comeback,” as the company turned over that side of its business to Blockchain.com in 2023. A year earlier, SoFi had received a banking charter from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which stipulated that the charter was contingent on the company exiting the crypto trading space.

Now, the company is set to begin letting members buy, sell, and hold coins such as bitcoin and ethereum, with plans to eventually offer stablecoins.

The release said SoFi plans to also add other services, including “the ability to borrow against their crypto assets, expanding payment options, and introducing new staking features, as well as blockchain and digital asset infrastructure capabilities for other companies offered by Galileo, SoFi’s technology platform.”

In addition to the new crypto offering, SoFi will begin offering eligible SoFi Money members the ability to make international remittances.

“These transfers will be fully automated in the SoFi app, at significantly faster speeds and lower costs compared to the multi-day waiting periods many experience today with traditional services, putting more money in people’s pockets, faster,” the company said.

The launch comes as SoFi is offering clients access to alternative investments and private company shares, traditionally limited to wealthier clients, as it tries to court the sophisticated investment expectations of Generation Z.

During a recent roundtable discussion with PYMNTS, Kelli Keough, executive vice president at SoFi, stressed her company’s focus on making investment opportunities accessible via low-minimum digital experiences, combined with significant financial education to foster informed investment decisions.

“Gen Z expects access to the products wealthy investors have, and they don’t understand why it’s not available digitally,” Keough said.