Key Takeaways
The Treasury issued a notice of proposed rulemaking Monday to implement Section 3 of the GENIUS Act, the first major proposal to put the stablecoin law into practice.
The proposal defines what counts as issuing a payment stablecoin in the United States and what counts as offering or selling one to a US person. Comments close October 19, 2026.
The law's own one-year rulemaking deadline expired last month with no final rules, and the statute takes effect January 18, 2027.
The Treasury Department has finally put something on paper. On Monday it issued a notice of proposed rulemaking to implement Section 3 of the GENIUS Act, and the document was published in the Federal Register Tuesday. It is the first major proposal from any agency to turn last year's stablecoin law into working rules.
The proposal answers two questions the industry has been asking since the bill was signed. What does it mean to issue a payment stablecoin in the United States, and what does it mean to offer or sell one to a person in the United States. Those definitions decide who has to get licensed and who does not, and the answers matter most to foreign issuers such as Tether. The public has 60 days to comment, with responses due on or before October 19.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the department is moving quickly to "provide the regulatory certainty businesses need to innovate and grow in America." The calendar tells a slower story. The law gave regulators one year to write rules, and that deadline passed last month with nothing final on the books. Monday's action follows an advance notice Treasury put out back in September.
The clock is real now. On January 18, 2027, issuing a payment stablecoin in the United States without a federal or state license becomes prohibited. From July 18, 2028, digital asset service providers cannot offer or sell a payment stablecoin to US persons unless a licensed issuer made it. A proposed rule with a 60-day comment window, followed by months of review, does not obviously land ahead of the first date. Complicating it further, the CLARITY Act would rewrite parts of GENIUS if it ever passes, and it stalled before the August recess. Worth watching.
People Also Ask
What did the Treasury propose for stablecoins?
A notice of proposed rulemaking implementing Section 3 of the GENIUS Act, defining what it means to issue a payment stablecoin in the United States and what it means to offer or sell one to a US person.
When is the comment deadline for the GENIUS Act stablecoin rule?
Comments must be received on or before October 19, 2026, which is 60 days after publication in the Federal Register on August 18.
When does the GENIUS Act take effect?
The law takes effect January 18, 2027, when issuing a payment stablecoin in the United States without an appropriate federal or state license becomes prohibited. A second restriction on digital asset service providers begins July 18, 2028.
Did regulators miss the GENIUS Act rulemaking deadline?
Yes. The statute set a one-year deadline for implementing rules that expired last month with no final rules issued. This proposal is the first major step toward meeting the requirement.