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 is open for public comment for 60 days, aligns with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's proposal in February and outlines capital, liquidity, and custody standards for firms issuing stablecoins. The FDIC's role is to regulate US depository institutions that issue stablecoins from their subsidiaries, and the proposal suggests that stablecoins will not be eligible for deposit insurance. The agency has also addressed the applicability of pass-through insurance to deposits held as reserves backing payment stablecoins, proposing that tokenized deposits be treated the same as other deposits.
While regulators work to implement the GENIUS Act, lawmakers are close to resolving a debate over yield-bearing stablecoin holdings, and the bill is expected to advance to a hearing soon.