The US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation has formally proposed its approach to regulating stablecoin issuers, as required by the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins Act. The proposal, which aligns with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's proposal in February, will be open for public comment for 60 days. The FDIC's role is to regulate US depository institutions that issue stablecoins from their subsidiaries, and the proposal sets out capital, liquidity, and custody standards for these firms.
The proposal also clarifies that stablecoins will not be eligible for deposit insurance, and that issuers will not be able to offer interest or yield on their tokens simply for holding or using a payment stablecoin. The FDIC's proposal is the second to emerge from the GENIUS Act, following the OCC's proposal on the issuer application process in December. While the regulators work to implement the GENIUS Act, some of its details are potentially being overhauled by the Senate's Digital Asset Market Clarity Act.
The proposal is a significant step towards establishing federal rules for stablecoin issuers, and it will be subject to further review and comment before being finalized.