GENIUS Act rule deadline nears for US stablecoin issuers

Stablecoin investors are watching July 18 because the GENIUS Act's rulemaking deadline will shape which issuers can secure a clear path into the US market. The date is not a blanket cutoff for users or all issuers. It is the one-year deadline for federal and state regulators, along with Treasury, to publish implementing rules through notice-and-comment rulemaking.

The law's effective date is separate. The OCC has said the Act takes effect on the earlier of two points: 18 months after its July 18, 2025 enactment, or 120 days after final rules are issued. For issuers, the first question is whether they can qualify as a "permitted payment stablecoin issuer," since the Act generally bars others from issuing payment stablecoins in the United States.

The proposals already on the table show a broad framework. OCC rules would cover applications, supervision, reserves, redemption, custody, revocation, and capital backstops. Treasury's FinCEN and OFAC proposal would also place permitted issuers under Bank Secrecy Act, anti-money-laundering, and sanctions requirements.

Foreign issuers and state-qualified issuers face extra hurdles. Foreign firms would need to comply with lawful orders and reciprocal arrangements. State regimes must also be judged "substantially similar" to the federal framework, a process that gets harder if federal rules are still unfinished by the deadline.