Banks Push Back as Stablecoin Yields Threaten Deposit Flows - Unchained

The banking industry’s discomfort with stablecoins hit full volume this week, after Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan warned that up to $6 trillion in deposits could leave the banking system if stablecoins are allowed to pay interest. That’s nearly a third of all U.S. commercial bank deposits, and clearly a scenario banks want to avoid at all costs.

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Moynihan’s message is simple: if stablecoins offer yield, banks lose their edge. Depositors might choose to earn 4% on-chain rather than 0.1% in a savings account. That shift would force big banks to borrow from the Fed at market rates, rather than living off your idle deposits.

So banks are lobbying hard. A Senate draft bill now includes a ban on interest for merely holding stablecoins, a move framed as consumer protection, but which critics argue is just propping up a broken banking model. Passive yield would be banned, but staking and liquidity rewards might still be allowed.

Let’s be clear: this is about control. Banks fear real competition. They fear losing lending volume to DeFi. But consumers stand to gain through better yield, more choice, and fewer middlemen deciding what your money can earn.

My takeaway:

We don’t hate the banks enough 😡

— Laura Shin (@laurashin) January 15, 2026