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The Federal Reserve proposed stablecoin rules on Sept. 25, 2026, requiring issuers to back tokens with high-quality liquid assets like Treasury bills, imposing capital and risk-management standards, and creating an application process for banks. The proposal, mandated by the Genius Act, is behind schedule and open for comment for 60 days after Federal Register publication.
The Federal Reserve proposed rules for stablecoin issuers on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2026, requiring stablecoins to be backed with high-quality, liquid assets such as Treasury bills and creating an application process for banks seeking to issue the tokens. The proposal is the central bank’s contribution to a federal stablecoin framework mandated by the Genius Act, and it arrives months after the law’s July deadline for regulators to act.
Under the proposed rules, stablecoin issuers would be required to hold reserves in assets the Fed deems high-quality and liquid, a category that includes Treasury bills. The Fed would also impose capital requirements on issuers to address credit and operational risks, along with standards for risk management.
The proposal includes additional rules for Federal Reserve-supervised firms that safekeep the assets backing stablecoins, and it would establish a formal process governing appeals, hearings and final determinations for banks applying to issue stablecoins. Fed Gov. Michael Barr, in a statement issued alongside the proposal, said stablecoins “will only be stable if they can be reliably and promptly redeemed at par in a range of conditions,” including during market stress and periods of strain on an individual issuer or its related entities.
The proposed rules stem from the Genius Act, which requires the Federal Reserve and other federal financial regulators to establish a comprehensive federal regulatory framework for stablecoins. That law set a July deadline for regulators and the Treasury Department to issue regulations, meaning the Fed’s Thursday proposal arrives behind schedule. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the National Credit Union Administration proposed their stablecoin rules in February, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. proposed rules in April, and the Treasury followed in August, according to Banking Dive.
Stakes for Stablecoin Issuers and Banks
The Fed’s proposal matters because it defines the conditions under which banks and other supervised firms can enter the stablecoin market, a segment that has grown rapidly with limited federal oversight. The requirement that reserves be held in high-quality, liquid assets directly addresses the central risk regulators have flagged: that a stablecoin’s peg holds only if holders can redeem tokens at full value, even under stress.
Barr emphasized that point, warning that redemption pressure can test “the value of even otherwise liquid government debt” during market stress. He said the framework “needs to provide strong guardrails and consumer protections so that new instruments can foster payments improvements that benefit households and businesses.”
For banks, the proposed application and appeals process provides a defined path — with hearings and final determinations — for entering the stablecoin business, replacing what has been a case-by-case supervisory approach. For existing issuers, the capital and risk-management standards could raise compliance costs depending on how the final rules are calibrated.
The Genius Act Timeline So Far
The Genius Act directed federal financial regulators and the Treasury Department to build a comprehensive federal regulatory framework for stablecoins, with regulations due by July. The Fed’s Thursday proposal makes it the last of the major banking regulators to put its rules forward, following the OCC and NCUA in February, the FDIC in April and the Treasury in August, according to Banking Dive.
Despite the wave of proposals across agencies this year, no agency has finalized stablecoin rules as of the Fed’s announcement. The Fed’s version covers both issuers directly and the Fed-supervised institutions that custody the reserve assets backing the tokens, an element that overlaps with proposals from other regulators and may require coordination before final rules land.
“The regulatory framework for stablecoins needs to provide strong guardrails and consumer protections so that new instruments can foster payments improvements that benefit households and businesses.”
— Fed Gov. Michael Barr, statement accompanying the proposed rules
Open Questions in the Proposal
Key details of the proposal remain to be worked out through the rulemaking process. The exact calibration of capital requirements — how much capital issuers must hold against credit and operational risks — and the precise definition of which assets qualify as high-quality and liquid are subject to the comment process.
It is also unclear how the Fed’s rules will interact with the parallel proposals from the OCC, NCUA, FDIC and Treasury, and how overlaps or gaps between them will be reconciled. Because no agency has finalized stablecoin rules, the timeline for a complete, operative federal framework is not yet known. The Fed is also months past the Genius Act’s July deadline, and no explanation for the delay was included in the announcement as reported.
Comment Period and Finalization Ahead
The Fed’s proposal will be open for public comment for 60 days after it is published in the Federal Register. Banks, stablecoin issuers, payments firms and consumer groups are expected to weigh in on the reserve requirements, capital standards and the application process for banks.
Following the comment period, the Fed will review feedback and decide whether to revise the rules before finalizing them. A finalized Fed framework, alongside final rules from the other banking regulators and the Treasury, would determine when a complete federal stablecoin regime under the Genius Act takes effect. No dates for final rules have been announced by any agency.
Key Questions
What would the Fed’s proposed stablecoin rules require?
Issuers would have to back stablecoins with high-quality, liquid assets such as Treasury bills, meet capital requirements addressing credit and operational risks, follow risk-management standards, and — for banks — go through an application process with defined appeals and hearings.
Why is the Fed issuing stablecoin rules now?
The Genius Act requires the Federal Reserve and other federal financial regulators to establish a comprehensive federal regulatory framework for stablecoins. The law set a July deadline, so the Fed’s Sept. 25, 2026 proposal arrives behind schedule.
Do these rules take effect immediately?
No. The proposal is open for comment for 60 days after publication in the Federal Register. The rules would take effect only after being finalized, and no agency has finalized stablecoin rules so far.
How does this fit with other regulators’ stablecoin proposals?
The OCC and NCUA proposed rules in February, the FDIC in April and the Treasury in August. The Fed’s proposal adds issuer requirements and rules for Fed-supervised firms that safekeep reserve assets. How the overlapping proposals will be reconciled is not yet clear.
What did Fed Gov. Michael Barr say about the proposal?
Barr said stablecoins “will only be stable if they can be reliably and promptly redeemed at par in a range of conditions,” including during market stress and strain on the issuer, and that the framework needs strong guardrails and consumer protections.
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