#genius法案预计2027年1月18日生效 The United States has passed a law regulating “dollars on-chain” (stablecoins such as $USDT and $USDC ). Starting January 18, 2027, only licensed institutions will be allowed to issue them. They must hold a real dollar in reserve for every coin, and they cannot pay interest.
This isn’t a ban; it’s a formal framework that licenses stablecoin issuers.
In the past, stablecoins were like vouchers anyone on the street could print, with “Redeemable for $1” written on them. But whether there was any money behind the counter—and where it was held—was entirely up to the issuer to say.
Now the United States says: from now on, you need a license to issue these vouchers. You must back them with cash or short-term Treasury securities, publish your books every month, and have the boss sign off. And you can’t say, “Hold my voucher and I’ll pay you interest,” because once you pay interest, it’s no longer a payment instrument—it’s a deposit. And taking deposits is the business of banks.
The path of “earning interest by holding stablecoins” is being squeezed. Note the distinction: the law bans issuers from paying interest; it doesn’t ban you from lending on-chain to earn interest.
But from now on, it will become increasingly difficult to promote “stablecoin yield products,” because the line between them and “taking deposits without a license” is getting thinner.
Stablecoins will increasingly resemble “payment instruments” rather than “investment products.”
This is good for the industry—it separates what stablecoins are best suited for (transfers, settlement, and cross-border payments) from what is most likely to go wrong (using reserves to earn interest-rate spreads).
This isn’t a ban; it’s a formal framework that licenses stablecoin issuers.
In the past, stablecoins were like vouchers anyone on the street could print, with “Redeemable for $1” written on them. But whether there was any money behind the counter—and where it was held—was entirely up to the issuer to say.
Now the United States says: from now on, you need a license to issue these vouchers. You must back them with cash or short-term Treasury securities, publish your books every month, and have the boss sign off. And you can’t say, “Hold my voucher and I’ll pay you interest,” because once you pay interest, it’s no longer a payment instrument—it’s a deposit. And taking deposits is the business of banks.
The path of “earning interest by holding stablecoins” is being squeezed. Note the distinction: the law bans issuers from paying interest; it doesn’t ban you from lending on-chain to earn interest.
But from now on, it will become increasingly difficult to promote “stablecoin yield products,” because the line between them and “taking deposits without a license” is getting thinner.
Stablecoins will increasingly resemble “payment instruments” rather than “investment products.”
This is good for the industry—it separates what stablecoins are best suited for (transfers, settlement, and cross-border payments) from what is most likely to go wrong (using reserves to earn interest-rate spreads).