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The U.S. Treasury Department has published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to implement the stablecoin provisions of the GENIUS Act. The rules detail who can issue "payment stablecoins" in the U.S. and under what conditions, with the law set to take effect on January 18, 2027. A key proposal defines the "issuance" of a stablecoin not at token creation, but at its first transfer to a user. Issuance is deemed to occur in the U.S. if either the issuer or the recipient is physically located there at that moment, regardless of citizenship. The framework allows foreign issuers to operate in the U.S. if they meet specific criteria, including comparable home-country regulation and registration with the OCC. They can avoid liability for accidental U.S. distribution with reasonable location verification procedures and by not marketing to the U.S. market. Liability for an illegal issuance may extend beyond the issuer to entities facilitating key steps like redemption, token creation, initial distribution, or providing primary market access, potentially including exchanges. The proposal addresses atypical distributions, stating that free airdrops to U.S. persons may constitute issuance. Rules for crypto asset service providers will phase in, with a ban on offering unlicensed stablecoins to U.S. persons starting July 18, 2028. The Treasury is soliciting comments on several open questions, including treatment of cross-chain bridges and wrapped assets, and is considering stricter liability models or exemptions for small transactions. Public comments will be accepted for 60 days after official publication.

The U.S. Treasury Department has published draft rules for regulating payment stablecoins under the GENIUS Act. The proposal, announced on August 17, 2026, mandates federal or state licensing for all U.S.-based issuers starting January 18, 2027. A 60-day public comment period is open until October 19, 2026. For foreign stablecoins, access to the U.S. market will be heavily restricted; providers cannot offer them unless the issuer can comply with U.S. legal orders and is registered with the OCC, with a full ban on unlicensed stablecoin sales taking effect from July 18, 2028. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated the rules aim to provide regulatory certainty, foster innovation, and strengthen the dollar's global role. The article's AI analysis notes parallels to the EU's MiCA framework and suggests stringent rules could push global liquidity to softer jurisdictions rather than consolidating the market under U.S. control.

The head of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Jonathan Gould, has committed to releasing final rules for implementing the GENIUS Act by November. Speaking at an industry symposium, Gould stated the OCC is considering feedback on its February proposal ahead of the law's January 2027 enactment, with applications from stablecoin issuers expected to be processed starting that year. The GENIUS Act, signed into law in July 2025, establishes a federal framework for payment stablecoins. While several agencies have published proposals, the OCC's upcoming final rule is seen as a key step to provide regulatory clarity before the deadline.

The U.S. Comptroller of the Currency, Jonathan Gould, stated that his agency will publish final rules for implementing the GENIUS Act, the stablecoin payments law, by November. Speaking at the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium, Gould noted that the OCC reviewed industry feedback on the proposed rules released in February. He expects the regulator to begin processing applications from stablecoin issuers in 2027. The GENIUS Act, signed in July 2025, aims to establish a U.S. regulatory framework for payment stablecoins and requires several federal agencies, including the OCC, Treasury, FDIC, and Federal Reserve, to develop corresponding rules. While multiple regulators have released proposals and gathered public comments, they have not published final rules yet, creating regulatory uncertainty for issuers ahead of the law's effective date in January 2027.

The Wyoming Stable Token Commission has adopted Chainlink Proof of Reserve to publish verified data about its Frontier (FRNT) stablecoin's reserves on-chain in near real-time. This move exceeds the minimum monthly disclosure requirements set by the federal GENIUS Act. An independent auditor, Network Firm, verifies FRNT's reserves and token supply against AICPA standards, with Chainlink's oracle network then publishing this data. Launched in January, FRNT is the first US state-issued stablecoin, backed by US dollars and short-term treasuries, with proceeds funding Wyoming's schools. The integration aims to fill information gaps between official reports, moving beyond daily snapshots to reflect reserve changes as they occur. Wyoming is also developing a second Chainlink feature, Proof of Reserve Secure Mint, to prevent unauthorized token creation by ensuring new FRNT tokens are only minted against sufficient reserves. This follows Wyoming's August decision to migrate FRNT's cross-chain interoperability from LayerZero exclusively to Chainlink's CCIP protocol.