US regulators proposed rules that would require stablecoin issuers to verify customers using standards similar to those applied by banks and credit unions, advancing implementation of the GENIUS Act and further integrating dollar-pegged cryptocurrencies into the traditional financial system.
Stablecoin Issuers Would Face Bank-Like Customer Rules Under US Proposal
19 June 2026 - 00:03 CEST
By Ana Pereira
The proposal, released on 18 Jun by the Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), the Federal Reserve and other banking regulators, would require permitted payment stablecoin issuers to maintain Customer Identification Programs, or CIPs, similar to those already required of traditional financial institutions.
Under the GENIUS Act, which established in 2025 the first federal framework for regulating payment stablecoins, issuers are treated as financial institutions for certain anti-money laundering purposes. The rules would require them to verify customer identities, maintain records and screen customers against government watchlists.
Banking standards
The proposal would largely affect institutional customers that create and redeem stablecoins directly with issuers, including exchanges, trading firms and payment companies. Most users acquire stablecoins through crypto exchanges and other secondary-market venues.
However, one Federal Reserve governor said the framework still leaves a large gap as it does not adequately cover secondary-market activity.
"I remain concerned, however, that the GENIUS Act regulatory framework does not do enough so far to address the risks of illicit finance conducted through secondary market transactions in payment stablecoins," Fed Governor Michael Barr said in a separate statement.
Barr said it remains too easy for bad actors to evade anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing controls when transacting in digital assets outside regulated channels. He added that he would review comments on whether portions of the customer identification framework should be extended to secondary market activity.
Enforcement efforts
The FinCEN proposal comes as stablecoin issuers have increasingly cooperated with law enforcement agencies. Tether, the largest stablecoin issuer, said in November 2023 that it had onboarded the US Secret Service to its platform and was working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), as part of a broader effort to help authorities trace and freeze illicit transactions involving its flagship stablecoin USDT.
The sector has grown into a $314bn market dominated by Tether's USDT and Circle's USD Coin (USDC), as financial institutions increasingly move beyond experimentation and launch their own stablecoins for payments and settlement.
The proposal is subject to a 60-day public comment period, after which regulators may revise the measure before issuing a final rule.
