The cryptocurrency sector often finds itself at odds with banking interests, particularly in regulatory matters. Recently, a coalition of bank trade associations has appealed to the US Department of the Treasury to prolong the public consultation period for the implementation of the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act, enacted last year. In a letter addressed to the Treasury Department and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, US bankers have requested that the comment periods for three separate GENIUS Act rule proposals be extended to at least 60 days after the conclusion of another rule-making effort by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). The OCC's initiative to establish a framework for overseeing stablecoin issuers has significant implications for the outcome of other rules being developed by the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), as well as a related rule-making effort at the FDIC.

According to the bankers, all these efforts are 'directly contingent on the OCC's final framework.' The collective regulatory endeavors, including proposals that have not yet emerged from the Federal Reserve and other agencies, 'represent a body of regulatory work of extraordinary scope and complexity.' The banking organizations, which include the American Bankers Association and the Bank Policy Institute, argue that their comments 'will necessarily be more comprehensive, and therefore more useful to the agencies, if we have sufficient time to evaluate the proposed rules together and to evaluate each against the finalized OCC framework.' The GENIUS Act is slated to be implemented by 2027, although it is not uncommon for federal agencies to grant extensions for complex rules. The Treasury Department has not immediately responded to a request for comment on the bank industry's request. The same bankers are also engaged in a stablecoin-related debate with the crypto industry, which has already led to a delay in the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act for months and may potentially jeopardize its passage into law this year.