FASB proposes guidance allowing stablecoins as cash equivalents

Aug 18, 2026

The Financial Accounting Standards Board issued a proposed accounting standards update on August 18, 2026, that would allow qualifying stablecoins to be classified as cash equivalents under U.S. GAAP. To qualify, stablecoins must offer direct, on-demand redemption for cash and be backed one-to-one by segregated, highly liquid reserves. The proposal aims to eliminate inconsistent corporate balance sheet treatments, placing qualifying tokens alongside Treasuries and commercial paper. Public comments are open until November 19, 2026.

FASB stablecoin cash-equivalent proposal

▪The Financial Accounting Standards Board issued a proposed accounting standards update on August 18, 2026, to clarify when certain digital assets, such as stablecoins, qualify as cash equivalents under U.S. GAAP.
▪The Financial Accounting Standards Board is accepting public comments on its proposed stablecoin accounting standards update until November 19, 2026.
▪The Financial Accounting Standards Board proposal would require all companies presenting cash equivalents to disclose their significant components annually, regardless of whether they hold digital assets.

Qualifying stablecoin criteria

▪The Financial Accounting Standards Board proposal states that reserves comprising crypto assets and gold would disqualify a token from cash-equivalent status due to valuation risks.
▪Under the Financial Accounting Standards Board proposal, a qualifying stablecoin must have segregated reserves of at least one-to-one held in short-term, highly liquid assets.
▪Under the Financial Accounting Standards Board proposal, a qualifying stablecoin must provide annual disclosure of its reserves.
▪The Financial Accounting Standards Board proposal states that active secondary markets are insufficient for cash-equivalent status if the holder lacks a direct issuer redemption right.
▪Under the Financial Accounting Standards Board proposal, a qualifying stablecoin must have a contractual right to redeem on demand directly with the issuer for a known cash amount.

Accounting consistency across companies

▪The underlying definition of cash equivalents under U.S. GAAP remains unchanged under the Financial Accounting Standards Board proposal, which only adds illustrative examples to clarify its application.
▪The Financial Accounting Standards Board proposed guidance aims to address inconsistent accounting treatments where different companies treat the same stablecoin as either cash-like or as another asset.

Corporate balance sheet treatment

▪Under the Financial Accounting Standards Board proposal, companies would retain the choice of whether to present qualifying stablecoins as cash equivalents.
▪The Financial Accounting Standards Board proposal would allow qualifying stablecoins to be presented on corporate balance sheets alongside U.S. Treasuries, commercial paper, and money market funds.

Industry advocacy for guidance

▪Stablecoin issuer Circle pushed for the stablecoin accounting project during the Financial Accounting Standards Board's agenda consultation.
▪The Financial Accounting Standards Board added the stablecoin project to its technical agenda in October 2025 and voted to draft the proposal in April 2026.

Government working group recommendation

▪The Financial Accounting Standards Board's stablecoin proposal arrives alongside statutory developments, including the GENIUS Act which became law in July 2025.
▪President Donald Trump's digital asset working group recommended in its July 2025 report that the Financial Accounting Standards Board consider treating payment stablecoins as cash equivalents.