The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued OCC Bulletin 2026-50 on 21 October 2026, announcing a final rule implementing the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act. This is the final rulemaking stage. The OCC had published the proposal at 91 Fed. Reg. 10202 on 2 March 2026 and has now adopted the rule after the comment period closed. The final rule and the GENIUS Act both take effect on 18 January 2027.
Most of the rule sits in a new 12 CFR part 15, which addresses reserve assets and redemption, a capital and operational backstop, risk management, audits, reports and supervision, the examination and supervision of foreign payment stablecoin issuers, custody, permitted issuer activities, applications and registrations, the transition of state qualified issuers to the federal regime, and revocation or rescission of approval in defined cases. The rule also revises 12 CFR part 3 on capital adequacy, 12 CFR part 6 on prompt corrective action, 12 CFR part 8 on assessment of fees, and 12 CFR part 19 on rules of practice and procedure.
The rule reaches national banks and federal savings associations, their subsidiaries, and federal branches and agencies and their subsidiaries. It also reaches foreign payment stablecoin issuers, nonbank entities seeking or holding federal qualified payment stablecoin issuer approval, and state qualified payment stablecoin issuers that fall under OCC regulatory or enforcement authority. An issuer already operating under a state licence needs to work through the transition provisions, and any entity intending to issue a payment stablecoin under OCC jurisdiction from 18 January 2027 needs its reserve, redemption, capital and custody arrangements documented against part 15 before that date.
Bank Secrecy Act, anti-money laundering and OFAC sanctions obligations are outside this rule and will be dealt with in a separate rulemaking conducted with the Treasury Department, so a part 15 application does not resolve those duties. The OCC has said it will announce separately when it begins accepting and processing applications and waiver requests, which leaves the opening of the application window undated as at 29 October 2026.
Licentium advises issuers, custodians and payment firms on stablecoin authorisation and continuing supervisory obligations across the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union. Work we undertake includes mapping reserve and redemption arrangements against 12 CFR part 15, preparing OCC applications and waiver requests, and advising state qualified issuers on the move to the federal regime.
Source: OCC Bulletin 2026-50, GENIUS Act Regulations: Final Rule, 21 October 2026