OCC finalizes GENIUS Act stablecoin rule, effective January 18, 2027
The rule sets reserve, redemption, capital and examination requirements for payment stablecoin issuers under OCC supervision.
REGULATIONSTABLECOINS & CBDC
Lukas Brenner
10/21/20261 min read
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency on October 21 issued a final rule implementing the GENIUS Act, the US federal law for payment stablecoins. The rule covers permitted payment stablecoin issuers and foreign issuers under OCC jurisdiction, as well as certain custody activities of OCC-supervised entities. Both the rule and the Act take effect on January 18, 2027.
Reserves must consist only of listed assets, including cash, insured bank deposits, Treasuries with 93 days or less to maturity, overnight Treasury-backed repos and government money market funds. The rule sets a 5% daily liquidity requirement, down from 10% in the March proposal, and caps exposure to a single counterparty at 40% of reserves. Issuers must redeem within two business days and keep at least $5 million in capital.
Issuers face a full-scope examination at least every 12 months, weekly confidential reports starting January 25, 2027, and monthly public disclosure of reserve composition. Bank Secrecy Act, anti-money laundering and sanctions rules are not part of the package and will follow in a separate rulemaking with the Treasury Department. The OCC said it will announce separately when it starts accepting applications.
Source: OCC, Forbes.