Interactive Brokers Clients Can Now Fund Accounts via USDC

Interactive Brokers (NASDAQ: IBKR), one of the largest electronic brokerage firms in the world, has officially added more features for cryptocurrencies. Customers can now directly add USD Coin (USDC) to their accounts on the platform starting this week. This is a big step toward linking decentralized finance (DeFi) rails with the infrastructure of the traditional stock market.

Smart traders and institutions can now move money from the blockchain to the brokerage right away, without the delays that come with regular Wire or ACH transfers.

How the Feature Works

According to the updated funding instructions on the Interactive Brokers website, the process leverages the company’s long-standing partnership with Paxos Trust Company.

Deposit Mechanism: Clients can generate a unique wallet deposit address within their IBKR portal.
Asset Support: Currently, the feature supports USDC (ERC-20 on Ethereum).
Automatic Conversion: When USDC is sent to the address, it is automatically converted 1:1 into U.S. Dollars (USD) and credited to the user’s cash balance.
Availability: Unlike traditional banking rails which close on weekends and holidays, blockchain deposits can be initiated 24/7/365. Funds generally settle and become available for trading equities, options, or futures within minutes of network confirmation.

One notable reaction came from industry watcher Matthew Sigel, Head of Digital Assets Research at VanEck, who noted the potential for stablecoins under evolving U.S. regulations. On X, he shared:

🚨Interactive Brokers ($IBKR, mkt cap $111B) mulls launching its own stablecoin to enable 24/7 funding and crypto transfers for its ~3.9M clients per CEO, riding the tailwinds of newly loosened U.S. stablecoin regulations. pic.twitter.com/c5fKona9CM
— matthew sigel, recovering CFA (@matthew_sigel) July 28, 2025

For years, one of the biggest problems for active traders has been not being able to take advantage of news that comes out on the weekend. If a big political event happened on a Sunday, traders couldn’t send money to their brokerage accounts until Monday morning when the banks opened.

Interactive Brokers keeps the “cashier” open all the time by using stablecoins. A trader who has money in a self-custodial wallet or a crypto exchange can now move that money into their brokerage account on a Sunday night, so it’s ready for the opening bell on Monday.

This feature will help retail traders, but industry experts say it is mostly meant for institutional clients and hedge funds that use hybrid strategies.

Interactive Brokers has always been one of the first companies to use new technology in this area. In 2021, they were one of the first big brokers to let people trade Bitcoin and Ethereum directly. This new way of getting money closes the loop, turning crypto into not only a tradable asset class on the platform, but also a way to move money.

Note: This news was written by our editor, rewritten with the help of AI, and reviewed by our editor to ensure its accuracy and compliance with our standards.