OCC Finalizes GENIUS Act Rules for Stablecoins Like USDC: What Changes in 2027

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the US agency that supervises national banks, published a final rule on October 21, 2026, that puts into practice the GENIUS Act, the stablecoin law Congress passed and President Trump signed on July 18, 2025, according to the OCC. The rule, numbered Bulletin 2026-50 and codified as 12 CFR 15, sets out how dollar-pegged stablecoins such as Circle's USDC can be issued, backed and redeemed inside the US financial system.

What the GENIUS Act Requires

The GENIUS Act, formally the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act, was enacted on July 18, 2025, and establishes a federal regulatory framework for payment stablecoin activities, according to the OCC's bulletin. The law generally bars anyone other than a permitted payment stablecoin issuer from issuing a payment stablecoin in the United States, the OCC said.

What the OCC's Final Rule Adds

The OCC rule translates that statute into operating requirements for national banks, federal savings associations, nonbank issuers and state-qualified or foreign issuers under its supervision. According to the OCC bulletin, the final rule sets standards across reserve assets, redemption, risk management, audits and reports, supervision, custody, and capital and operational backstop requirements for issuers. The bulletin notes that rules on the Bank Secrecy Act, anti-money-laundering and sanctions compliance will be addressed in a separate rulemaking.

Crypto-industry site CryptoSlate reported that the final text sets a standard two-business-day deadline for issuers to process redemption requests, replacing an earlier proposal that would have let issuers extend that window by seven days during high-volume periods. If daily redemptions exceed 10% of a stablecoin's outstanding supply, the issuer must notify the OCC within 24 hours and may request an extension, though CryptoSlate said the agency expects such extensions to be rare. New reporting metrics on unpaid redemptions and processing times are expected once the OCC's revised PS-01 report format clears federal review, with weekly submissions beginning January 25, 2027, and quarterly reports starting March 31, 2027, per CryptoSlate's account of the rule.

The Interest Question

The GENIUS Act prohibits stablecoin issuers from paying interest directly to holders, and Yahoo Finance reported that the OCC's final rule keeps that prohibition in place. That means Circle cannot pay interest directly to USDC holders.

However, Yahoo Finance reported that the OCC removed a proposed restriction on third-party crypto platforms offering yield on idle stablecoin balances, opting instead for case-by-case evaluation. Platforms that hold customers' stablecoins, rather than the issuers themselves, may fall into this category, meaning existing rewards programs do not get an automatic pass.

Industry and Bank Reaction

Circle, USDC's issuer, and exchange operator Coinbase welcomed the rule, and both companies' shares rose more than 4% after it was announced, Yahoo Finance reported. A Circle executive called the rule 'an important milestone in translating America's leadership on stablecoin legislation,' while Coinbase's policy chief said 'there's a lot to like' about the rules, according to Yahoo Finance.

The American Bankers Association pushed back, with its chief executive, Rob Nichols, saying the rule would 'preserve the status quo for crypto platforms despite Congress's clear intent to protect local lending,' according to Yahoo Finance's reporting. Banking groups have argued that if stablecoins and exchanges can offer yields that outcompete bank deposits, customers could shift savings out of banks — so-called deposit flight — reducing banks' capacity to lend and, in a worst case, straining weaker banks.

Why It Matters for Adoption

Supporters of the rule argue that clearer reserve, redemption and oversight standards make dollar-pegged stablecoins more predictable for banks, payment companies and everyday users to integrate into existing financial services, which is the central goal cited by the OCC. Critics within the banking industry counter that the rule does not go far enough to limit yield-like competition between crypto platforms and insured banks. Both the OCC's final rule and its effects on deposits will not be tested until it takes effect on January 18, 2027.