The Senate today voted 68-30 in favor of legislation to establish a regulatory framework for payment stablecoins, with proposed amendments to establish routing mandates and interest rate caps for credit cards left out of the final bill.
The GENIUS Act (S. 1582) would establish procedures for institutions seeking licenses to issue stablecoins and establish regulatory standards for stablecoin issuers. The legislation received bipartisan support, but two proposed amendments threatened to derail the bill. The first by Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) would have added the routing mandates in the Credit Card Competition Act to the legislation. The second by Sen. Josh Hawley (D-Mo.) would have capped credit card interest rates at 10%. The American Bankers Association opposed both amendments, which were not adopted.
The GENIUS Act next heads to the House.
In a statement, ABA President and CEO Rob Nichols said the association appreciates the Senate’s effort to create a rigorous regulatory framework around stablecoin, a goal the banking industry supports. ABA also appreciates the key improvements made to the bill by Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott (R-S.C.), Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) and the legislation’s bipartisan co-sponsors, he added.
“We will continue to work with lawmakers to pursue a final stablecoin bill that embraces innovation without undermining our nation’s resilient and trusted financial system and the critical role banks play in the economy,” Nichols said.
