OCC Proposes Rules to Implement the GENIUS Act for Stablecoin Issuance, United States, February 2026

On 3 February 2026, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (Federal Register Document No. 2026-04089) to implement the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act (GENIUS Act). The proposed rule addresses the issuance of payment stablecoins and related activities by national banks, federal savings associations, and other entities subject to the OCC's supervision. The rulemaking is at the proposal stage; no effective date has been set pending public comment.

The GENIUS Act charges the OCC with licensing, regulating, and supervising payment stablecoin issuers that are national banks or federal savings associations. The proposed regulations would establish the conditions under which OCC-supervised entities may issue payment stablecoins, hold permissible reserves, and engage in ancillary stablecoin-related activities. The OCC's authority derives from the National Bank Act (12 U.S.C. Chapter 1) and the GENIUS Act itself, which designates the OCC as the primary prudential regulator for stablecoin issuers operating within the federal banking system.

National banks and federal savings associations seeking to issue payment stablecoins must obtain OCC approval under the proposed rule. Entities currently issuing stablecoins under state money transmitter licenses or without federal authorization face potential restructuring obligations if they wish to operate within the OCC-regulated channel. Fintech firms and non-bank entities that issue stablecoins outside the federal banking system will not be directly subject to this rulemaking but may face indirect effects through reserve and interoperability requirements that affect their bank counterparties.

The public comment period runs from the date of publication in the Federal Register on 3 February 2026. A parallel rulemaking was issued by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) on 12 February 2026, extending GENIUS Act implementation to credit union subsidiaries. State-chartered banks operating under state regulators are not within the OCC's proposed rule but may face analogous state-level requirements as individual states develop complementary legislation.

Licentium advises on stablecoin regulatory strategy, licensing structuring, and compliance programs for issuers and fintech firms across U.S. and international jurisdictions. We maintain a dedicated partner network covering federal banking law, digital asset regulation, and payment systems. Contact us to discuss your position under the GENIUS Act. Examples of matters we handle or assign to partners: stablecoin issuer licensing, OCC charter applications, reserve structure design, cross-border payment compliance, and digital asset regulatory advisory.

Source: Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking — Implementing the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act for the Issuance of Stablecoins by Entities Subject to the Jurisdiction of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Federal Register Document No. 2026-04089, published 3 February 2026. Official URL: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/02/03/2026-04089/. Confirmed 23 March 2026.

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