The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. of the United States rolled out the first formal rule proposal stemming from the new law governing stablecoin issuers, with its board voting Tuesday to open a 60-day public comment period on its system for processing applications from its regulated banks seeking to issue stablecoins from subsidiaries.
The agency — led by Acting Chairman Travis Hill, who is also President Donald Trump’s nominee for the permanent seat — will gather comments and review them before it can issue a final rule. Tuesday’s proposal, approved by all three members of the select committee, would establish procedures for accepting applications, review them within a 120-day approval window and provide an appeals process for those rejected.
“Under the proposal, the FDIC would adopt a tailored application process that would allow it to evaluate the safety and soundness of an applicant’s proposed activities based on statutory factors while minimizing the regulatory burden on applicants,” said Hill, whose nomination could be confirmed as soon as this week by the Senate.
The GENIUS (Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for Stablecoins in the United States) Act was the first major crypto law approved by Congress. It defines a complex set of regulators for companies wanting to issue stablecoins, the dollar-pegged tokens essential for transactions in the digital assets sector. For insured depository institutions, the FDIC is the designated regulator.
Hill said another, more substantive rule will emerge “in the coming months” that will establish the FDIC’s capital, liquidity and risk management requirements for these issuers.
As part of the proposed application process, interested institutions should submit letters describing their activities, including financial information and their plans for organizing a safe and regular broadcast.
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