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Deadline Missed, Rules Pending
US regulatory agencies missed the GENIUS Act’s one-year rulemaking deadline, with no final stablecoin regulations issued before the July 18 deadline.
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The agencies involved include the Department of the Treasury, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and the Federal Reserve Board, according to rulemaking trackers by Chapman and Paradigm.
Treasury led with four proposals out of 10 notices of proposed rulemaking since the law was signed by President Donald Trump on July 18, 2025, including standards for state regulatory regimes, registration requirements for foreign issuers, and anti-money laundering compliance.
The OCC issued two proposals covering nationally chartered payment stablecoin issuers, while the FDIC issued one focused on supervisory expectations and reserve management, and the National Credit Union Administration proposed rules enabling federally insured credit unions to participate in stablecoin issuance.
Missing the deadline does not invalidate the GENIUS Act, but the unfinished rules could create regulatory uncertainty for stablecoin issuers as the law’s implementation timetable approaches January 18, 2027.
CLARITY Push and Market Pressure
Federally chartered crypto bank Anchorage Digital used the GENIUS one-year anniversary to urge lawmakers to pass the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (CLARITY), writing, "On GENIUS’ one-year anniversary, we’re renewing our call for Congress to pass the CLARITY Act".
Senator Cynthia Lummis echoed the urgency around the GENIUS Act timeline, calling it "an important first step" and urging lawmakers to support the CLARITY Act.
Industry executives warned that the missed rule deadline leaves stablecoin issuance rules short of workable banking and settlement infrastructure, with Diogo Cassinelli of Trace Finance saying issuance clarity was "only ever half the problem" for cross-border payments.
Cassinelli said each new banking relationship requires independent compliance judgments because there is "no shared legal standard they can point to," adding months to timelines that should take weeks.
The stakes for market participants are heightened by the gap between legislative momentum and regulatory execution, with agencies still drafting key operating standards for reserves, liquidity, custody, and risk management.
Tether, Compliance, and What’s at Risk
Tether’s USDT faces potential consequences tied to the stalled GENIUS rulemaking, with Pluang warning it risks a US ban by 2028 if it fails to meet new stablecoin rules under the GENIUS Act.
“The GENIUS Act has completed its first year, renewing discussion on US cryptocurrency regulation as lawmakers and industry leaders call for broader reforms to protect market participants”
Pluang also described the stablecoin market’s contraction since mid-May 2026, saying the market has contracted by over $12.4 billion while USDT remains dominant with a market cap of $184 billion.
CryptoSlate framed the first year as giving stablecoins federal legitimacy while implementation rules remain unfinished, leaving banks and compliance teams to interpret the framework before the January 18, 2027 effective date.
Crypto News | Other said customer identification rules remain open, describing a joint proposal that would require covered issuers to verify customers and maintain identification records, with the public comment period running beyond the July 18 rulemaking deadline.
Until final rules are issued, stablecoin issuers and financial institutions must prepare for a framework that still lacks several implementation details, including reserve eligibility, liquidity requirements, custody standards, and risk management frameworks.
