The rulebook for stablecoins was pretty much finished yesterday đ
On October 21, the U.S. OCC officially finalized the detailed rules for the GENIUS Act
They take effect on January 18, 2027
Itâs the first regulator to complete the rulemaking process
The hard requirements are straightforward:
Reserves must be fully backed 1:1
Redemptions generally must be paid out within two business days
Issuers must have at least $5 million in capital
Theyâll also need annual audits, custody arrangements, and risk controls
This covers a sizable market
$USDT has a market cap of about $182.8 billion + $USDC at about $72.1 billion
Thatâs over $254 billion combined
From now on, theyâll all have to follow this rulebook
But I think the real story isnât reserves
Itâs that the rules on rewards havenât been settled đ
Issuers are prohibited from paying interest directly
But do rewards offered by exchanges count as a violation?
The OCC didnât impose a blanket ban this time; itâll review things case by case
That means offers like Coinbaseâs 3.75% on USDC and PayPalâs 4% on PYUSD havenât been given a get-out-of-jail-free cardâtheyâll still have to pass review
In other words:
Stablecoins are moving from the Wild West to licensed operations
The bar is rising for smaller issuers, and big exchanges will have to rethink their reward programs
The AML rules havenât been released yet; theyâll be issued separately with the Treasury Department
License applications arenât open yet either, so donât rush to say anyone is already compliant
What do you think about reviewing rewards case by case?
Will they ultimately survive, or gradually get tightened up?
$USDC $USDT $ETH
#稳ĺŽĺ¸ #GENIUSćłćĄ #CryptoRegulation
Not investment advice. DYOR. Trading involves risk.
On October 21, the U.S. OCC officially finalized the detailed rules for the GENIUS Act
They take effect on January 18, 2027
Itâs the first regulator to complete the rulemaking process
The hard requirements are straightforward:
Reserves must be fully backed 1:1
Redemptions generally must be paid out within two business days
Issuers must have at least $5 million in capital
Theyâll also need annual audits, custody arrangements, and risk controls
This covers a sizable market
$USDT has a market cap of about $182.8 billion + $USDC at about $72.1 billion
Thatâs over $254 billion combined
From now on, theyâll all have to follow this rulebook
But I think the real story isnât reserves
Itâs that the rules on rewards havenât been settled đ
Issuers are prohibited from paying interest directly
But do rewards offered by exchanges count as a violation?
The OCC didnât impose a blanket ban this time; itâll review things case by case
That means offers like Coinbaseâs 3.75% on USDC and PayPalâs 4% on PYUSD havenât been given a get-out-of-jail-free cardâtheyâll still have to pass review
In other words:
Stablecoins are moving from the Wild West to licensed operations
The bar is rising for smaller issuers, and big exchanges will have to rethink their reward programs
The AML rules havenât been released yet; theyâll be issued separately with the Treasury Department
License applications arenât open yet either, so donât rush to say anyone is already compliant
What do you think about reviewing rewards case by case?
Will they ultimately survive, or gradually get tightened up?
$USDC $USDT $ETH
#稳ĺŽĺ¸ #GENIUSćłćĄ #CryptoRegulation
Not investment advice. DYOR. Trading involves risk.