Big Banks, Tokenization, New Business: Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo and Morgan Stanley See Growth, Not a Threat

By Kevin · 2026-10-18 · News

Oct. 18 (CandyPulse) — For years, the big question on Wall Street was whether blockchain would replace the banks. This week, three of the biggest gave their answer: they plan to use it to grow.

On their third-quarter earnings calls, Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo and Morgan Stanley all described tokenization, turning real-world assets into digital tokens, as a growth opportunity rather than a threat.

Key takeaways

Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo and Morgan Stanley each framed tokenization as a growth play
Wells Fargo has tokenized deposit payments in production, reaching accounts in two minutes or less
Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon said tokenization and DeFi could expand its trading business
Morgan Stanley linked faster-moving assets to a continuing need for advice
No new product launches were announced, and none of the banks gave tokenization revenue figures

What each bank said

Bank	Stance	Where it stands
Goldman Sachs	Tokenization could grow trading	Runs GS DAP, its tokenized asset platform, since 2022
Wells Fargo	Already in production	Tokenized deposit payments live at small volume
Morgan Stanley	Advice still matters	Linked faster asset movement to advice demand

Goldman Sachs: more trading, not less

CEO David Solomon argued that tokenization and DeFi could grow Goldman's trading business rather than erode it. The bank has been building for years, including GS DAP, its tokenized asset platform launched in 2022.

Wells Fargo: the most concrete example

Wells Fargo went furthest. Its tokenized deposit payments are already in production, at small volume, with payments reaching beneficiary accounts in two minutes or less. It is also evaluating tokenized securities, real-world assets and crypto trading for wealth management clients.

Morgan Stanley: speed still needs a guide

CFO Sharon Yeshaya connected faster-moving assets with a lasting need for advice. In other words, even if money moves at blockchain speed, clients will still want someone to help them decide where it goes.

Why it matters

When the biggest names in banking stop treating tokenization as a threat, it shifts from experiment to strategy. It follows other recent moves, such as BNY and Citadel Securities using a tokenized Treasury as repo collateral.

It also mirrors what is happening in crypto-native projects. The CANDY ecosystem, for example, is preparing Candy RWA to tokenize rewards first and real estate later. Read more about RWA here.

A note of caution

The activity is still small. None of the banks put numbers on tokenization revenue or how big it could become.

What's next

Wells Fargo: whether its tokenized deposits scale beyond small volumes
Goldman Sachs: further growth of its digital asset platform
Industry: more banks likely to follow as tokenization becomes routine

The message from Wall Street is clear: tokenization is coming, and the banks want to be the ones building it.

Disclaimer: This article is for information only and is not financial advice. Crypto assets are volatile and can lose value. Always do your own research before making any investment decision.