GENIUS Act Implementation Falls Behind as Agencies Miss Deadline

US federal agencies have missed a deadline to publish rules that finalize implementing the GENIUS Act, leaving key parts of the country's new stablecoin framework unfinished. Instead, they issued 10 new proposals for amending the rules.

The Treasury Department, Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and National Credit Union Administration needed to issue rules under the legislation by July 18, one year after the law was signed.

Up until now, the GENIUS Act established a federal framework for payment stablecoins. It includes requirements for issuers to maintain reserves backing the tokens and comply with AML and sanctions rules. 

Several agencies have already published proposed rules, but none had finalized their main implementing regulations by the statutory deadline. Out of the 10 notices of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) released after the GENIUS Act became law, the Treasury Department put forward the highest number of proposals, totaling four, that address the wider execution of the act.

The missed deadline doesn’t invalidate the GENIUS Act or delay its implementation. The law is scheduled to take effect 18 months after it was signed, or 120 days after the relevant final rules are published, whichever comes first.

However, this delay will give stablecoin issuers less time to prepare for the new requirements once the final rules are issued. The agencies still need to complete the rulemaking process before the framework can take full effect.