The cryptocurrency industry often finds itself at odds with bankers over regulatory issues, and this time, a coalition of bank trade associations has requested that the US Department of the Treasury extend the public comment period for the implementation of the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act. In a letter to the Treasury Department and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, the bankers are asking 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) has finalized its rule. The OCC's push to implement its rule for policing stablecoin issuers has significant implications for the outcome of other rules being pursued 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 directly contingent on the OCC's final framework and represent a complex body of regulatory work.
The banking organizations, including the American Bankers Association and the Bank Policy Institute, claim that they need sufficient time to evaluate the proposed rules together and against the finalized OCC framework to provide comprehensive comments. The GENIUS Act is set to be implemented by 2027, although federal agencies often grant extensions for complex rules. The Treasury Department has not yet responded to the bank industry's request.
Meanwhile, the same bankers are engaged in a separate debate with the crypto industry over the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, which has been delayed for months and may not become law this year.