The United States Federal Reserve has announced it will host a Payments Innovation Conference on Tuesday, 21 October, bringing together policymakers, financial institutions, and technology leaders to explore the future of money and payments.
The event, which will be livestreamed to the public, will focus on emerging technologies such as stablecoins, tokenisation, decentralised finance (DeFi), and artificial intelligence (AI) in payments. It marks another significant step in the Fed’s evolving approach to digital assets and modern financial infrastructure.
A Platform for Innovation
Fed Governor Christopher J. Waller underscored the importance of keeping pace with innovation in financial services.
“Innovation has been a constant in payments to meet the changing needs of consumers and businesses,” Waller said in the official release. “I look forward to examining the opportunities and challenges of new technologies, bringing together ideas on how to improve the safety and efficiency of payments, and hearing from those helping to shape the future of payments.”
Fed Governor Christopher J. Waller
The conference will feature panel discussions on:
Stablecoin business models and use cases.
Tokenisation of financial products and services.
The convergence of traditional finance with decentralised systems.
The impact of AI on payments innovation.
By convening a wide range of industry voices, the Fed aims to address both opportunities and risks in redesigning payment rails for the digital age.
Changing Stance on Crypto
The central bank’s move comes amid a noticeable shift in its stance on digital assets under the Trump administration. Earlier this year, the Fed withdrew guidance that had discouraged banks from engaging in crypto and stablecoin-related activities.
It also ended a supervisory programme for banks involved in crypto and dropped the “reputational risk” label from bank examinations, a classification that critics argued contributed to crypto debanking. These changes were seen as regulatory wins for the industry, signalling greater openness from the Fed towards innovation in digital assets.
Stablecoins in Focus
Stablecoins are set to be a central topic at the conference, with Fed officials already acknowledging their potential to reshape payments. According to the minutes of July’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), fiat-pegged tokens could improve the efficiency of the payments system.
The Fed also noted that the growth of stablecoins could increase demand for backing assets such as US Treasury securities. This linkage highlights the dual role of stablecoins: enhancing transaction efficiency while potentially impacting broader capital markets.
Looking Ahead
By dedicating a full conference to payments innovation, the Federal Reserve is signalling that digital assets and tokenisation are no longer peripheral experiments but central considerations for the future of financial infrastructure.
The discussions on stablecoins, DeFi integration, and AI-driven payments will offer insights into how the US central bank envisions a modernised payments ecosystem. For the public and industry participants alike, the livestreamed event will provide a rare opportunity to hear directly from the Fed and its partners on the next chapter of financial innovation.
