PNC Bank is extending its crypto tie-up with Coinbase from trading into payments. Under a new pilot with the exchange, eligible corporate and institutional clients can receive payments in Circle's USDC, which are then automatically converted into US dollars.

The companies position the service as a way to give businesses quicker access to funds and speed up cross-border transactions, since stablecoins can be sent and received almost instantly. It will initially be offered on a limited basis.

The partnership dates back to last year, when PNC began offering crypto trading to its customers through Coinbase's institutional crypto-as-a-service platform. The Pittsburgh-based bank also said it would provide banking services to Coinbase.

PNC frames the rollout as a test-and-learn phase to see which stablecoin features actually benefit its clients.