🇺🇸 LATEST: The OCC just finalized its GENIUS Act rule, and stablecoin stocks are rallying on it.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called the rule a "watershed moment in American finance," likening the GENIUS Act to Lincoln's National Currency Act of 1863, which created a national framework for bank-issued currency.
Circle jumped 4.47% and Coinbase gained 3.65% on the news.
The rule takes effect January 18, 2027, and sets federal standards for reserves, redemptions, custody, capital and audits. It also gives the OCC authority over foreign payment stablecoin issuers. After that date, issuing a payment stablecoin without approval carries criminal penalties, though regulators can grant temporary waivers of up to 12 months to pending applicants.
Not everything is settled. Anti-money laundering and sanctions rules were left out and will come through a separate Treasury rulemaking.
Banks are also pushing back hard. The American Bankers Association says the final rule undermines Congress's intent. Its objection centers on the OCC dropping a proposed presumption against third-party rewards programs, which banks fear opens a backdoor for yield-like payments through exchanges and distribution partners. Issuers themselves still can't pay yield directly. The ABA, backed by 52 state bankers associations, argues that gap pulls deposits away from the community lending banks rely on.
Wall Street sees clarity. Banks see a loophole. Both sides now have a January deadline to work with.
#Stablecoins #GENIUSAct #Circle #Coinbase #Crypto $COIN $CIRC.US
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called the rule a "watershed moment in American finance," likening the GENIUS Act to Lincoln's National Currency Act of 1863, which created a national framework for bank-issued currency.
Circle jumped 4.47% and Coinbase gained 3.65% on the news.
The rule takes effect January 18, 2027, and sets federal standards for reserves, redemptions, custody, capital and audits. It also gives the OCC authority over foreign payment stablecoin issuers. After that date, issuing a payment stablecoin without approval carries criminal penalties, though regulators can grant temporary waivers of up to 12 months to pending applicants.
Not everything is settled. Anti-money laundering and sanctions rules were left out and will come through a separate Treasury rulemaking.
Banks are also pushing back hard. The American Bankers Association says the final rule undermines Congress's intent. Its objection centers on the OCC dropping a proposed presumption against third-party rewards programs, which banks fear opens a backdoor for yield-like payments through exchanges and distribution partners. Issuers themselves still can't pay yield directly. The ABA, backed by 52 state bankers associations, argues that gap pulls deposits away from the community lending banks rely on.
Wall Street sees clarity. Banks see a loophole. Both sides now have a January deadline to work with.
#Stablecoins #GENIUSAct #Circle #Coinbase #Crypto $COIN $CIRC.US