The House today voted in favor of two bills to create a regulatory framework for payment stablecoins and digital assets. House members also voted in favor of a separate bill to ban the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency.
The GENIUS Act [S. 1582] would establish procedures for institutions seeking licenses to issue stablecoins and establish regulatory standards for stablecoin issuers. The bill passed 308-122. The legislation previously cleared the Senate and now heads to President Trump for his signature into law.
The American Bankers Association earlier today sent lawmakers a letter with a list of recommendations on how to improve the legislation, including that it ensure all entities engaged in the payment stablecoin ecosystem comply with Bank Secrecy Act obligations. In a statement after the vote, ABA President and CEO Rob Nichols reiterated the need for stablecoin regulation to balance the potential of the technology with limits on its possible negative consequences.
“While the framework established in the GENIUS Act seeks to create that regulatory perimeter and spur innovation, stablecoins continue to risk disintermediating core bank activity like deposit taking and lending, which could undermine the fundamental role banks play in making loans to consumers and businesses,” Nichols said.
Nichols added that ABA will continue its advocacy on stablecoin issues, including through the rulemaking process, “to ensure credit is not restrained by incentivizing value be held in payment stablecoin rather than bank deposits.”
House members also voted 294-134 in favor of the CLARITY Act [H.R. 3633], which would create a regulatory framework for a broad range of digital assets. The bill now heads to the Senate.
Finally, the House voted 219-210 in favor of the Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act [H.R. 1919], which would prohibit the Federal Reserve from issuing a retail central bank digital currency to individuals. It would also prohibit the Fed and the Treasury Department from issuing a CBDC with authorization from Congress. ABA submitted a letter in favor of the bill, which now heads to the Senate.
“ABA believes strongly that a central bank digital currency is unnecessary in the United States and would present unacceptable risks and costs to the financial system,” Nichols said after the vote. “Issuance of a CBDC would fundamentally change the relationship between citizens and the Federal Reserve, undermine the important role banks play in extending credit, exacerbate economic and liquidity crises, and impede the transmission of sound monetary policy.
