The US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation has formally unveiled its proposed approach to regulating stablecoin issuers, a key component of the federal government's efforts to oversee the growing stablecoin market. The proposal, which aligns with a similar proposal from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in February, will be open to public comment for 60 days. The FDIC's proposal outlines capital, liquidity, and custody standards for stablecoin issuers, although the specifics will not be finalized until after the agency has reviewed public feedback.
As expected, the proposal clarifies that stablecoins will not be eligible for deposit insurance, which is typically provided to traditional bank accounts. The FDIC also addressed concerns around rewards programs and yield-bearing stablecoin holdings, suggesting that issuers will not be able to offer interest or yield simply for holding or using a payment stablecoin.
The proposal also outlines capital requirements for issuers and suggests that tokenized deposits will be treated similarly to other deposits. While regulators move forward with implementing the GENIUS Act, lawmakers are still debating the details of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, which could potentially impact the regulation of stablecoins. The lack of Democratic appointees in key regulatory agencies has given Republican appointees greater control over the crafting of regulations.