GENIUS Act (US stablecoin law)

The GENIUS Act (Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act) is a US federal law that creates a regulatory framework for payment stablecoins. It was signed into law by President Donald Trump on 18 July 2025, making it the first major piece of US federal crypto legislation.

The law requires payment stablecoins issued in the US to be backed one-to-one by high-quality liquid reserves, such as US dollars, short-term Treasury bills and similar instruments, with regular public disclosure of reserves. Issuers must be approved, either as subsidiaries of banks, federally licensed non-bank issuers, or state-regulated issuers below a size limit. Stablecoin holders get priority claims in an issuer's insolvency, and issuers are subject to anti-money-laundering rules. Issuers are not allowed to pay interest directly to holders.

Many rules take effect after regulators finalise implementing regulations. The law is expected to shape how USDC, USDT and new bank-issued stablecoins operate.