U.S. Comptroller Issues Stablecoin Rules to Take Effect on January 18, 2027
Key Facts
The U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued its final rule implementing the GENIUS Act for payment stablecoins, setting a framework for their issuance and related activities within its jurisdiction. The rule covers foreign issuers of these stablecoins subject to the OCC's supervisory authority, according to its bulletin on the final text. It includes capital and operational support requirements, alongside provisions governing audits, reporting and supervision of covered entities. It also sets a general deadline for fulfilling redemption requests of no more than 2 business days from the date a request is submitted. Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould described the rule as "a clear and practical framework for innovation in payment stablecoins." The framework announced by the OCC thus combines regulation of issuance with requirements for issuers' operations and supervision, as well as the redemption of holders' funds.
On yields, the rules maintain a ban on stablecoin issuers, such as Circle, paying interest to holders of the coins they issue, according to the Associated Press. Stablecoin trading platforms, meanwhile, can offer interest-like rewards, with the arrangements assessed case by case. This approach distinguishes between interest paid by an issuer to holders of its coin and rewards offered by a stablecoin trading platform. The Associated Press said banks' opposition to those rewards stems from concerns that customers' savings could move into the cryptocurrency sector. Their objection centers on the possibility that customers could withdraw money from banks and move it into stablecoins to pursue rewards available through trading platforms. The ban on issuer-paid interest remains in place alongside the availability of platform rewards subject to an assessment of each arrangement, according to the agency.
As for changes between the proposal and the final text, the OCC removed the rebuttable presumption that certain yield arrangements violated the ban. The proposal had included this presumption in its treatment of reward arrangements before the OCC excluded it from the adopted rule. Instead, the OCC said it would assess each reward arrangement based on "all relevant facts and circumstances." This approach includes examining the facts associated with the arrangement presented to it and the surrounding circumstances when assessing its compliance with the ban. The OCC did not establish a general list classifying reward arrangements in advance as permitted or prohibited under the final rule. According to the text, regulatory treatment of these arrangements depends on a case-by-case examination following the removal of the presumption included in the proposed wording.
Adoption of the final text followed a legislative and regulatory process that began with enactment of the GENIUS Act on July 18, 2025, according to the OCC. The OCC published its proposed implementing rules on February 25, 2026, before issuing the final version governing activities within its jurisdiction. This process addresses the issuance of payment stablecoins and related activities at entities under its supervision, including covered foreign issuers. Bank secrecy and anti-money laundering requirements will be addressed in separate rules, according to the OCC's statement. The separate process also covers sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control, alongside anti-money laundering and bank secrecy requirements. The OCC said those rules would be developed in coordination with the U.S. Treasury Department.
On procedures for entering the new framework, the OCC made the start of acceptance of licensing and exemption applications contingent on completion of administrative approval for the application forms. It said acceptance would begin after the information collection associated with those forms receives final approval from the Office of Management and Budget. This step covers applications from entities seeking a license, as well as exemption applications available under the regulatory framework. The OCC said an issuer with a substantially complete application pending review could request an exemption from the requirements of the law or the rule. This requires the application to have that status with the OCC by the date it set for the new framework to take effect. The transitional exemption process is therefore linked to the completeness of the issuer's application and its remaining under OCC review at the specified date.
The OCC set January 18, 2027, as the effective date for the law and the final rule, which is also the eligibility cutoff for pending applications to request an exemption. It published revised weekly and quarterly reporting forms for stablecoin issuers under its supervision and opened them for public comment. The comment period for the revised reporting forms runs for 30 days from publication of the information collection in the Federal Register. Under the announced schedule, weekly reporting begins with the January 25, 2027, report date, subject to Office of Management and Budget approval. Quarterly reporting begins with the March 31, 2027, report date, also subject to approval by the same office.