Aug 4, 2026
U.S. regulators reached the GENIUS Act's one-year rulemaking deadline on Saturday without issuing the final regulations needed to fully implement the federal stablecoin framework signed into law by President Trump in July 2025.
New York's Department of Financial Services has published draft stablecoin regulations to harmonize the state's existing framework with the federal GENIUS Act signed in July 2025. The proposed rules introduce new reserve limits, operational safeguards, and updated oversight requirements for USD-backed payment stablecoins, with public comments open until June 22.
Crypto venture firm Paradigm and DeFi advocacy group Hyperliquid Policy Center jointly submitted a letter to U.S. Treasury urging FinCEN and OFAC to narrow proposed anti-money laundering compliance rules for stablecoins, warning that overly broad obligations could negatively impact decentralized finance protocols.
The US Senate is advancing stablecoin legislation through the Clarity Act while blocking CBDCs, as Andreessen Horowitz urges the Treasury to establish uniform stablecoin regulations under the GENIUS Act to preserve token fungibility and enable payment innovation.
BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, submitted a comment letter opposing a potential 20% cap on tokenized reserve assets in the GENIUS Act, which would limit products like its BUIDL fund. The firm urged the OCC to drop the cap idea and expand eligible assets.
Morgan Stanley debuted a government money market fund specifically designed for stablecoin issuers to hold reserves, requiring a minimum $10 million investment. The fund is aligned with GENIUS Act requirements and positions the Wall Street giant as a reserve manager for the stablecoin industry.
The OCC released a 376-page proposed rule on February 25, 2026, marking the first substantive federal regulatory framework for payment stablecoin issuance under the GENIUS Act. The proposal covers licensing, 100% reserve backing, a two-business-day redemption window, a $5M minimum capital floor, and a strict prohibition on paying yield to holders.
The FDIC Board approved its first proposed rule under the GENIUS Act on December 16, 2025, establishing the application process for FDIC-supervised banks seeking to issue payment stablecoins through a subsidiary. The rule sets filing requirements, evaluation factors, processing timelines, and an appeals process, with safety and soundness as the primary criterion.
President Trump signed the GENIUS Act into law on July 18, 2025, making it the first federal legislation to regulate cryptocurrency in U.S. history. The law requires 100% reserve backing for payment stablecoins, designates the OCC as primary regulator for non-bank issuers, and explicitly classifies compliant stablecoins as neither securities nor commodities.