The U.S. stablecoin regulatory framework took a major step forward as the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency announced a final rule implementing the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act. The rule establishes requirements for permitted payment stablecoin issuers and foreign payment stablecoin issuers under OCC jurisdiction, along with certain custody activities conducted by OCC-supervised entities.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent framed the move as historic, comparing it to the National Currency Act of 1863. 'Just as President Abraham Lincoln’s National Currency Act established a national framework for bank-issued currency, the GENIUS Act establishes a federal framework for payment stablecoins in the digital age,' Bessent said. Comptroller Jonathan V. Gould said the agency was providing a clear, practical framework for payment stablecoin innovation 'with strong standards for reserve backing, redemption, and risk management.'
The final rule addresses all OCC-required regulations under the GENIUS Act except those tied to the Bank Secrecy Act, anti-money laundering, and Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctions. Those elements will be handled in a separate rulemaking coordinated with the Department of the Treasury. The OCC received hundreds of comments from crypto-focused companies, community bankers, trade groups and academics during the rulemaking process. The agency said it would announce separately when it will begin accepting and processing applications and waiver requests from prospective permitted payment stablecoin issuers. Both the final rule and the GENIUS Act take effect on January 18, 2027.
Before the final rule was published, Comptroller Gould said during DC Fintech Week that the OCC expected to complete the regulation by the end of October. The rule covers stablecoin reserves, redemptions, risk management and supervision. The agency had issued its proposal in February and closed public comments in May, missing the GENIUS Act’s July 18, 2026, statutory deadline. The broader law was already scheduled to take effect January 18, 2027, or 120 days after final implementing rules, whichever came first.
The OCC’s move comes amid intensified competition between federal and state regulators. Since President Donald Trump took office, the OCC has approved or conditionally approved at least 13 national trust company charters for crypto firms, including Ripple, Circle, BitGo and Paxos. Traditional banking groups have pushed back, arguing crypto firms do not face the same consumer protection requirements as conventional banks. The Independent Community Bankers of America sued the OCC earlier in October over its charter decisions.
At the state level, New York and Wyoming announced a joint effort to streamline crypto licensing and supervision. The agreement covers Wyoming banking and trust charters, New York banking and trust charters, and New York’s BitLicense. Regulators will share examination information and coordinate reviews to reduce duplication. Firms with at least three years of clean regulatory history and substantially similar business models may qualify for expedited reviews, with regulators aiming to decide eligible applications within six months. However, the agreement does not change either state’s licensing requirements or automatically authorize firms to operate in both jurisdictions.
Wyoming Division of Banking Commissioner Jeremiah Bishop said the partnership shows how state regulators can work together to improve supervision, while Senator Cynthia Lummis welcomed the agreement on X. The state-level coordination also interacts with Section 16(d) of the GENIUS Act, which allows certain state-chartered banks conducting stablecoin activities to provide custody and money transmission across state lines without separate state licenses. A proposed CLARITY Act would amend that provision to give states greater control over financial institutions operating within their borders.
