The banking sector is increasingly involved in the crypto industry's key regulatory efforts. Recently, a coalition of US bank trade associations has requested that the US Department of the Treasury extend the public consultation period for the implementation of the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act, which was passed last year. In a letter to the Treasury Department and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, the bankers have asked for an extension of the comment period for three GENIUS Act rule proposals, to at least 60 days after the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) completes its rulemaking process. The OCC's rule for regulating stablecoin issuers has significant implications for 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 rulemaking at the FDIC.
The bankers argue that all these efforts are contingent on the OCC's final framework and that the collective regulatory work is of extraordinary scope and complexity. The banking organizations, including the American Bankers Association and the Bank Policy Institute, believe that having sufficient time to evaluate the proposed rules together and against the finalized OCC framework will enable them to provide more comprehensive and useful comments to the agencies.
The GENIUS Act is scheduled to be implemented by 2027, although federal agencies often grant extensions for complex rules. The Treasury Department has not yet responded to a request for comment on the bank industry's request. Meanwhile, the same bankers are engaged in a debate with the crypto industry over stablecoin regulation, which has delayed the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act for months and may jeopardize its chances of becoming law this year.