OCC Races Clock on GENIUS Act Stablecoin Rules Amid Tight Deadline

U.S. banking regulators are racing against time to finalize rules for payment stablecoins before the GENIUS Act takes effect in January 2027.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is targeting November for its final regulations, which would give prospective issuers a short period to analyze the framework before the law takes hold.

Comptroller Jonathan Gould stated that the OCC aims to move quickly and finalize a rule by November, allowing it to start processing applications within the new year.

The GENIUS Act restricts issuance in the United States to 'permitted payment stablecoin issuers,' including subsidiaries of insured banks, federally approved nonbank issuers, and state-licensed issuers.