SoFi Technologies on Thursday launched SoFi Earn (SOFIE), a bank-issued tokenized deposit that pays a variable 4.40% annual percentage yield (APY) and customers convert funds into stablecoins 24/7, according to the company's announcement. The offering combines a yield-bearing bank deposit with direct access to the bank's stablecoin for crypto transactions. Because the 4.40% rate is variable, the yield can adjust over time rather than being locked in.

Tokenized deposits are blockchain-based representations of funds held at a commercial bank. Each SOFIE token represents $1 deposited at SoFi Bank, and the product has no minimum balance requirement. Customers can convert SOFIE one-for-one into SoFiUSD, the bank's dollar-pegged stablecoin, to buy cryptocurrency inside SoFi's app or send funds to supported external wallets. The structure keeps the interest-earning component within a bank deposit while the stablecoin serves as the transactional layer for crypto purchases and external transfers.

FDIC coverage

Deposits held in SOFIE qualify for Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) coverage of up to $250,000 per depositor, per insured bank, for each account ownership category. That threshold is the standard maximum insurance amount for deposits at FDIC-insured banks. SoFiUSD itself carries no FDIC insurance, meaning funds converted into the stablecoin fall outside that protection.

Regulatory backdrop

The launch comes amid regulatory movement in the United States. On Wednesday, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), which regulates US national banks, issued a final rule covering payment stablecoin issuance and certain custody activities, with the framework under the GENIUS Act taking effect in mid-January.

SoFi had signaled the move earlier in the year. Cointelegraph reported in May that the company planned to introduce interest-bearing tokenized deposits when it made SoFiUSD available through its consumer banking app. At the time, SoFi said the feature would follow in the coming weeks.

According to the bank, SOFIE is rolling out to SoFi Crypto members through November, ahead of the GENIUS Act framework's mid-January effective date — two dates that mark the product's near-term path. Members access the SOFIE deposit account, which is maintained separately, through their SoFi Crypto account.