One year after the law was signed, United States regulator still missed the deadline for rulemaking to finalize the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for the U.S. Stablecoins Act or GENIUS Act.
The GENIUS Act is the first comprehensive federal law for stablecoins in the U.S. signed into law by President Donald Trump on July 18, 2025. This act aims to balance digital currency innovation with strict protection and financial stability.
Proposals but No Final Verdic
A lot of proposals have been offered by different regulatory agencies but still no final rules from the majority.
Most agencies have published draft rules and collected public feedback over the past year, but most key packages remain against proposals.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has issued a broad proposal in March to cover reserve assets, capital, and liquidity. The paper comprehensively discusses custody, risk management, and reporting, but remains a draft.
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) proposed careful standards for stablecoins issuers under its supervision, including rules on reserves, redemption, custody, and risk management, plus how deposit insurance would apply to stablecoin reserves and tokenized deposits
National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) added a licensing proposal in February and a wider operational/risk management proposal in May. The comment feedback came late, making it impossible to finalize by July 18.
The Treasury Department has also tried to set up rules so small stablecoin companies can stay under state control instead of federal, but the plan is still unfinished.
Joint proposals by regulators (Fed, FinCEN, OCC, FDIC, NCUA) demanded stricter ID checks and record-keeping for stablecoin issuers, but the rule is still under review that analysts predict won’t be finalized anytime soon.
Moreover, FDIC/FinCEN/OFAC proposals want stricter rules to fight illegal money activities and enforce sanctions. Yet, again, the rules are still under review and not final yet.
Despite these, none of the key agencies have issued final rules under the GENIUS Act by the deadline of July 18, 2026.
The missed deadline emphasizes how complex and contested stablecoin regulation is.
Agencies are balancing innovation with financial stability, consumer protection, and anti-money laundering safeguards, yet the delay could slow down adoption or force interim compliance strategies until final rules are published.
What Could Happen Next?
The delay with the deadline does not invalidate the GENIUS Act. The law will remain, however due to not having a finalized rule, stablecoins issuers will face regulatory uncertainty as most banks are still undergoing assessment on what strategy options they will give stablecoins.
Congress, on the other hand, is running out of time. With only less than six months until the GENIUS Acts fully takes effect, regulators must issue their final rules by January 18, 2027, or 18 months after enactment.
Issuers must comply with the statute baseline obligations now, but they are operating in a gray zone until regulators finalize the rules.
As most regulatory compliance frameworks would continue to rely on the decision-making of agencies rather than a published legal agenda, this creates challenges for compliance planning, risk management, and coordination with state regulators.
