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OCC Races the Clock to Finish GENIUS Act Stablecoin Rules

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OCC Races the Clock to Finish GENIUS Act Stablecoin Rules

2026-08-20 15:46 UTCBy AlphaScala Research DeskSource reporting: PYMNTSEditorial standards

OCC Races the Clock to Finish GENIUS Act Stablecoin Rules

The OCC targets November to finalize payment stablecoin rules before the GENIUS Act effective date in January. Treasury's related proposal comment period closes Oct. 19.

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U.S. banking regulators are racing the clock to complete a new federal rulebook for payment stablecoins before the GENIUS Act takes effect in January. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is now targeting November for its final regulations.

Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould told the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium that the OCC is moving quickly after receiving industry feedback on a sweeping proposal governing stablecoin issuers.

“We are very intent on moving quickly and getting a final rule out by November so that we will be able to start processing applications within the new year,” Gould said, according to Decrypt.

The timetable gives prospective issuers only a short window to analyze the finished framework before the law takes effect. The GENIUS Act becomes effective on the earlier of Jan. 18, 2027, 18 months after its July 2025 enactment, or 120 days after federal regulators issue final implementing rules.

Regulators have already passed the law’s one-year deadline for issuing rules. The OCC’s November goal is an attempt to finish the framework before the January effective date adds uncertainty for issuers, banks, trading platforms and other digital-asset service providers.

The OCC released its 376-page proposal in February and accepted public comments through May. It covers nearly every operational aspect of a payment stablecoin: reserve assets, redemption at par, liquidity and risk management, audits and reporting, custody, supervision, and the orderly wind-down of failed issuers. The proposal also includes application procedures and capital backstops. Separate rules cover state-qualified issuers transitioning into the federal system.

Other rulemaking addresses Bank Secrecy Act, anti-money laundering and sanctions requirements in coordination with the Treasury Department. The OCC said its main proposal contains all the rules the agency must issue except those areas.

Enacted in July 2025, the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act created the first federal U.S. regulatory structure specifically for payment stablecoins, digital assets meant to maintain a fixed value and be used for payment or settlement.

The law generally restricts issuance to “permitted payment stablecoin issuers.” Those include subsidiaries of insured banks and federally approved nonbank issuers. State-licensed issuers can also qualify under certain regimes. Issuers must hold reserves backing their outstanding stablecoins, honor redemption requests, and follow rules on disclosure, risk management, audits and financial crime.

The framework extends beyond issuers. Digital-asset service providers generally will be barred from offering or selling payment stablecoins to U.S. customers unless the issuer is permitted under the law or is a qualifying foreign issuer. Treasury published a separate proposal addressing those restrictions on Aug. 18. The comment period remains open until Oct. 19, leaving little time to finish that part of the framework before January. Treasury’s proposal would clarify which activities amount to offering or selling a stablecoin in the United States.

Gould said the OCC expects to begin processing issuer applications in 2027. He also reported that digital asset chartering activity has increased eightfold compared with the previous administration, a sign that federal oversight is drawing broader interest.

The November target is not a firm publication date. Until regulators complete the interlocking rules, companies will lack a definitive account of the operational, licensing and compliance standards they must meet. For an industry preparing to enter a newly regulated federal market, the remaining months are as important as the statute itself.

Treasury’s comment period on its related proposal closes Oct. 19. That leaves just weeks to finish that portion of the framework before January.