Treasury Cracks Down on Foreign Stablecoins Under GENIUS Act
The US Treasury has proposed new rules for foreign stablecoins under the GENIUS Act, which aims to ensure compliance with lawful US orders. The proposal requires platforms to conduct reasonable diligence before relying on foreign issuers' promises of compliance. This includes confirming that the issuer is not subject to a public prohibition on secondary trading and considering all reasonably available information about the issuer.
The rules would have two timing points: January 18, 2027, when the Act's general regime takes effect, and July 18, 2028, when stricter offering limits begin. After this date, foreign issuers must meet specific requirements, including supervision under a comparable regime, registration with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and sufficient reserves at a US financial institution.
The proposal does not identify qualifying tokens or decide whether USDT can remain available. Instead, it shifts the access decision to the businesses that list, sell, custody, or otherwise make stablecoins available to US customers.