OCC targets November deadline for final GENIUS Act stablecoin regulations

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is targeting November 2026 to finalize regulations implementing the GENIUS Act, the federal stablecoin framework signed by President Trump in July 2025. Comptroller Jonathan Gould announced the timeline at the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium on August 19, 2026, after the statutory July 18, 2026 deadline passed with ten proposed rulemakings still pending across federal agencies. The OCC's February 2026 proposal covers reserve requirements, redemption at par, capital backstops, and supervision procedures for stablecoin issuers, with the framework taking effect January 18, 2027 or 120 days after final rules are issued. The agency has conditionally approved several cryptocurrency firms for national trust bank charters since December 2025, including Circle, Ripple, and World Liberty Financial, reflecting an eightfold increase in digital asset approvals compared to the previous administration.

OCC November finalization target

• ▪The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency proposal covering customer identification for stablecoin issuers remains open for comments through August 21, 2026.
• ▪Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould disclosed the November 2026 timetable during the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium on August 19, 2026.
• ▪The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency will adjust the final GENIUS Act regulations in response to comments from cryptocurrency companies and other industry participants.
• ▪Bank Secrecy Act, anti-money-laundering, and Office of Foreign Assets Control requirements were excluded from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency February 2026 GENIUS Act proposal.
• ▪The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued proposals in June 2026 addressing anti-money-laundering, counter-terrorist financing, and sanctions risk management for permitted stablecoin issuers.
• ▪Digital asset approval activity at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has increased eightfold compared with the Biden administration.
• ▪The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency expects to finalize its main GENIUS Act regulations by November 2026.

GENIUS Act missed deadline

• ▪The GENIUS Act instructed federal regulators to issue implementing regulations within one year of July 18, 2025.
• ▪The GENIUS Act statutory deadline passed on July 18, 2026, without the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, or National Credit Union Administration completing all required rules.
• ▪The GENIUS Act payment stablecoin framework takes effect on January 18, 2027, or 120 days after the primary federal regulators issue final implementing rules, whichever comes first.
• ▪The Wyoming Blockchain Symposium on August 19, 2026 was presented by SALT and Kraken in Jackson Hole.
• ▪President Donald Trump signed the GENIUS Act into law on July 18, 2025.
• ▪Ten proposed rulemakings were pending across federal agencies when the GENIUS Act deadline expired on July 18, 2026.

Stablecoin reserve redemption requirements

• ▪The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency GENIUS Act proposal appeared in the Federal Register on March 2, 2026.
• ▪The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency proposed a capital and operational backstop for stablecoin issuers, although the final amount and structure could change following public feedback.
• ▪The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency GENIUS Act proposal covers issuance, reserve management, redemption, supervision, and the process for closing a payment stablecoin issuer.
• ▪The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency released its main GENIUS Act proposal on February 25, 2026.
• ▪Jonathan Gould described efforts to remove risk from the banking system as extremely shortsighted.
• ▪The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency GENIUS Act proposal had a 60-day comment period ending on May 1, 2026.
• ▪The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency GENIUS Act proposal contains requirements for liquidity, risk controls, audits, reports, custody, and regulatory examinations.

Digital asset charter applications

• ▪The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency received an annual average of fewer than four charter applications between 2011 and 2024.
• ▪The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's public licensing tracker listed 13 pending digital asset applications in August 2026.
• ▪Several cryptocurrency companies received conditional national trust bank approvals from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency since December 2025, including Circle, Ripple, Paxos, BitGo, and Fidelity Digital Assets.
• ▪World Liberty Financial must maintain at least $20 million in eligible capital before opening World Liberty Trust Company.
• ▪Pending digital asset applications at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in August 2026 included Payward National Trust Company, Revolut Bank US, EDX Trust, Agora National Trust Bank, and PAYO Digital Bank.
• ▪The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency conditionally approved World Liberty Financial's application to establish World Liberty Trust Company on August 14, 2026.
• ▪The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency received 40 de novo bank applications during the 18 months preceding August 2026, including proposed national trust banks.

Treasury territorial scope proposal

• ▪Under the Treasury Department's August 17, 2026 proposal, companies would generally need authorization when their stablecoin activities involve US customers or take place within the United States.
• ▪Foreign stablecoin issuers must operate under a comparable regulatory system and meet conditions involving reserves, supervision, and US regulatory access before US platforms can distribute their stablecoins under the GENIUS Act.
• ▪The Treasury Department proposed regulations on August 17, 2026, addressing when payment stablecoins are issued, offered, or sold in the United States.
• ▪The Treasury Department's August 17, 2026 proposal includes standards for digital asset service providers that make foreign-issued stablecoins available to American users.
• ▪The Treasury Department's August 17, 2026 proposal defines when an issuer requires a federal or state license and when a platform becomes subject to distribution restrictions under the GENIUS Act.

Perspective of Jonathan Gould and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency

• ▪Jonathan Gould described efforts to remove risk from the banking system as extremely shortsighted.
• ▪Digital asset approval activity at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has increased eightfold compared with the Biden administration.