OCC Seeks Public Feedback on Proposal to Implement the GENIUS Act

• The OCC has opened a 60-day window for feedback on the proposal for implementing the GENIUS Act.
• OCC’s proposal details how it will supervise, regulate, and enforce rules for stablecoins.
• GENIUS Act links crypto to traditional finance, boosting regulated stablecoins, says Ahmed.

The US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has unveiled a program to accommodate public commentary on draft rules implementing the GENIUS Act. According to its latest announcement, the regulator has opened a 60-day window for interested parties to comment on the proposed regulatory framework for payment stablecoins pursuant to the GENIUS Act.

Making the GENIUS Act Operational

Notably, the OCC’s proposal outlines how stablecoins would be issued and supervised under its jurisdiction. The rulemaking notice issued on Wednesday would allow the public to suggest potential adjustments to how payment stablecoins can be issued, backed, supervised, and potentially shut down under federal oversight.

Reportedly, the latest move by the OCC aims to draw the GENIUS Act closer to becoming operational, since it was passed into law in July 2025 as the first federally established stablecoin framework. From a general perspective, the GENIUS Act prohibits anyone, except “permitted payment stablecoin issuers,” from issuing payment stablecoins in the US. It also bars digital asset service providers from offering non-compliant stablecoins to US users.

The OCC’s Draft is Inclusive and Expansive

Speaking on the latest development, Finstep Asia founder Musheer Ahmed said the regulations, as contained in the GENIUS Act, bring the crypto industry into the traditional finance world with significant oversight and connectivity with the banking industry. Ahmed expects the US market to experience a surge in regulated stablecoins from non-bank payments and crypto institutions for tokenized TradFi use cases.

It is worth noting that the OCC draft covers multiple aspects, including reserve asset standards, mandatory redemption at par, liquidity and risk management controls, audits, supervisory examinations, custody requirements, and application pathways for new issuers. The regulator also introduced a “capital and operational backstop” and amended existing capital adequacy and enforcement rules.

According to the agency, its functions will involve the regulation and enforcement of rules over certain permitted stablecoin issuers, including subsidiaries of national banks and federal savings associations. They will also oversee the actions of Federal-qualified payment stablecoin issuers and some State-qualified participants.

Related: FDIC Moves to Formalize How Banks Can Issue Stablecoins Under GENIUS Act