N3XT Joins Clear Markets' Collateralizer as 24/7 Dollar Custodian

N3XT, a Wyoming-chartered bank, has joined Clear Markets' Collateralizer network as a dollar custodian. The system is built to let institutions post cash held at the bank as margin for crypto derivatives that trade around the clock. The two companies shared the announcement exclusively with Unchained ahead of its Thursday release.

The release does not say when the arrangement goes live. It names no clients, transaction volumes or fees.

N3XT Holds the Dollars, Clear Markets Runs the Rails

N3XT is the custodian, holding dollars under account-control agreements. Clear Markets is the technology provider and never takes custody of client funds. Cash on deposit at N3XT can be pledged as collateral against swaps, options and forwards on the Clear Markets Swap Execution Facility (CMSEF). The venue trades institutional crypto derivatives around the clock and has held full CFTC registration since 2016.

The same dollars can also fund accounts at other exchanges or back loans, the companies said.

Collateralizer runs as a stand-alone service, separate from CMSEF. It ties together a group of independent bank custodians for margin and collateral work. N3XT moves dollars between its own accounts at any hour, so firms can answer initial and variation margin calls on nights and weekends. Crypto derivatives keep trading then, and the cash never leaves the bank.

"Capital markets are moving toward an increasingly 24/7 environment, and institutions need dollar infrastructure that can move instantly and with the markets," N3XT CEO Jeffrey Wallis said.

Shawn Dorsch, president of Clear Markets, said the goal is to make it easier for institutions to trade swaps and other derivatives. Their collateral would stay safely at an independent bank custodian.

A Charter That Bars Lending and Requires Full Reserves

N3XT operates under Wyoming's special purpose depository institution charter, created by the state's Special Purpose Depository Institutions Act in 2019. The law bars an SPDI from making loans, including temporary credit relating to overdrafts. It requires the institution to hold unencumbered liquid assets worth at least 100% of its depository liabilities at all times.

Wyoming counts three things as liquid assets. They are US currency held on the institution's premises, US currency held at a Federal Reserve bank or a federally insured financial institution, and highly liquid investments such as US Treasury or other federal agency obligations. Depositors must be legal entities rather than natural persons, so an SPDI serves businesses, not retail savers.

N3XT's own site says the bank accepts deposits and enables real-time B2B payments but does not lend. All deposits are backed 1:1 by cash or ultra-short-term US Treasuries. It also states the bank does not participate in FDIC insurance, arguing there is no need for a government backstop.

The bank positions itself around stablecoins. It says it provides connective tissue for fiat movement into and out of stablecoin environments and will help regulated stablecoin issuers meet their compliance requirements.

Signature Bank Lineage in the Founding Team

N3XT launched in December 2025 under founder Scott Shay, the former chairman of Signature Bank, which collapsed in March 2023, and Jeffrey Wallis, now CEO and president. Wallis previously served as Director of Digital Asset and Web3 Strategy at Signature Bank.

Shay also created Signet, which N3XT describes as the first 24/7 blockchain-enabled bank money transfer system and one that was popular within the compliant crypto industry.

The site lists Pharsalus and Reciprocal Ventures under the heading "Backed by Industry Leaders".

The Release Does Not Say Whether It Is Live

The announcement's own wording points both ways. Wallis said N3XT clients "can now use cash securely held at N3XT as collateral" for digital asset and real-world asset trading. Another passage of the same release says institutions "will be able to pledge" dollars.

The companies said they plan to look for more uses of N3XT's always-on dollar transfers.