OCC Finalizes GENIUS Act Stablecoin Rules As Bessent Compares Law To Lincoln's National Currency Act

• The OCC finalized its rules for stablecoin issuers under the GENIUS Act on Wednesday.
• Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent compared the law to President Abraham Lincoln's National Currency Act of 1863.
• He called it "a watershed moment in American finance."

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) finalized its rules for stablecoin issuers under the GENIUS Act on Wednesday, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent calling the law "a watershed moment in American finance."

Bessent said in the OCC release that “just as President Abraham Lincoln's National Currency Act of 1863 established a national framework for bank-issued currency, the GENIUS Act establishes a federal framework for payment stablecoins” in the digital era.

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He added that the rule carried “that landmark legislation forward, providing a clear, practical foundation for private-sector innovation, competition, and American leadership in digital assets."

What The Rule Covers

The final rule will set requirements for permitted payment stablecoin issuers and foreign payment stablecoin issuers under the OCC's oversight. It also covers certain custody activities by the banks the agency supervises, according to the release.

Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan V. Gould said the rule gave "a clear, practical framework for payment stablecoin innovation, with strong standards for reserve backing, redemption, and risk management." The OCC said it received hundreds of comments on its proposal from crypto companies, community bankers, trade groups, and academics.

The rule left out anti-money laundering (AML) and sanctions requirements, which will come in a separate rulemaking with the Treasury, the agency said. The OCC will also announce when it starts accepting applications from would-be stablecoin issuers, separately. 

The final rule and the GENIUS Act take effect on January 18, 2027. Given "the nascency of the industry," the OCC said it will watch how the market develops and adjust its framework as needed.

Coinbase Pushes For Consistency

Coinbase (COIN) said it "generally" supported the department's own proposed rule under the GENIUS Act, in a comment letter to the Treasury on Monday. Coinbase urged the Treasury to make sure all federal stablecoin regulators used consistent definitions, standards, and effective dates, and warned that mismatched rules would create uncertainty for the market.

Coinbase also asked the Treasury to confirm that U.S. crypto platforms could handle foreign stablecoins that did not qualify under the law for cross-border payments, as long as no U.S. customer held them. Without that clarity, those payments could shift to foreign intermediaries outside the Treasury's reach.

COIN stock was up over 3% during morning trade hours. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around Coinbase moved to ‘neutral’ from the ‘bearish’ zone, while chatter around it stayed at ‘normal’ levels over the past day.

Meanwhile, CRCL stock was up over 4% in morning trade. Circle was one of the top trending tickers on Stocktwits at the time of writing. Retail sentiment around CRCL improved to ‘bullish’ zone from ‘neutral’ zone over the past day, as chatter increased to ‘normal’ from ‘low’ levels. 

Market Structure Bill Still Stalled

While the GENIUS Act moves ahead, the broader rules for crypto markets remain stuck. The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (CLARITY Act) stalled in the Senate, with stablecoin yield among the key sticking points.

That leaves the GENIUS Act as the main federal crypto framework in place for now, focused on stablecoins rather than the wider market.

Read also: NEAR Rebounds After Launching A Business Wallet That’s ‘Confidential From The Market’, With XRP, Bitcoin And Solana Support

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