- Senator Bill Hagerty introduced the GENIUS Act to establish a clear regulatory framework for stablecoins.
- The proposal defines issuance procedures and designates oversight roles of federal institutions and state agencies.
- It also mandates monthly audited reports on fiat reserves for issuers, with criminal penalties for non-compliance, aiming to promote innovation while ensuring financial stability.
US Senator Bill Hagerty presented a bill on Tuesday to establish a regulatory framework for stablecoins, according to a report from Bloomberg, which Hagerty later confirmed.
The proposed bill, named the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation in U.S. Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act, aims to define payment stablecoins and outline proper procedures for their issuance, as Hagerty told Bloomberg:
My legislation establishes a safe and pro-growth regulatory framework that will unleash innovation and advance the President’s mission to make America the world capital of crypto.
Bill Hagerty, US SenatorRelated: Senator Lummis Puts Pressure on US Marshals’ To Defend its Record on Seized Bitcoin Management
Clear Regulatory Framework for Stablecoins
Previously, a key contention point in prior attempts at stablecoin legislation in the Senate was the division of regulatory authority between federal and state agencies.
The new bill attempts to address this issue by designating the Federal Reserve to oversee large bank issuers, while the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) would regulate non-bank issuers with assets exceeding US$10 billion.
Moving on, issuers that fail to provide monthly audited reports on the status of their fiat reserves will be charged with criminal penalties.
Stablecoin Bill to Pass First
On the same day, White House AI and Crypto Advisor David Sacks held his first crypto-focused press conference and outlined the Trump administration’s legislative priorities for the crypto industry, which includes two bills: the new market structure framework and Hagerty’s GENIUS proposal.
According to Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott, both bills are expected to move through the Senate within President Donald Trump’s first 100 days in office. Scott indicated that Hagerty’s stablecoin proposal “will likely advance first”, as it aims to finally establish some clarity for issuers of US-pegged assets like Tether, Circle and Paxos.
Notably, Republican leaders from different parts of Congress gathered and announced plans to form a bicameral working group to coordinate crypto legislation alongside Sacks and the White House.
Sacks expressed how important it is for the US to shift toward digital finance, stating:
Financial assets are destined to become digital, just like every analog industry has become digital. And we want that value creation to happen in the United States.
David Sacks, Crypto CzarRelated: Analyst Says US Bitcoin ETFs on Track to See Over $50 Billion Inflows in 2025
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