OCC targets finalizing GENIUS Act stablecoin framework

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is aiming to finalize its rules implementing the GENIUS Act for stablecoin issuers in November 2026. The timing is tentative, and the framework will affect issuers such as Tether, the company behind USDT and the US-focused USAT.

What is happening

The GENIUS Act, signed into law on July 18, 2025, set federal rules for stablecoin issuers. Its implementation is continuing through federal rulemaking, and several requirements for issuers are still awaiting final regulations. An August 2026 review of the law's implementation found that federal agencies had missed the July deadline for completing the required rules.

The OCC is now targeting November 2026 to finalize its framework. The exact date has not been confirmed, and the target could shift.

Several related milestones remain open. The law allows foreign stablecoin issuers to serve American businesses under certain conditions, including a Treasury Department determination that their home jurisdictions provide comparable regulatory oversight. As of August 2026, the Treasury had not issued such a determination for the British Virgin Islands, where Tether is incorporated. Restrictions on US platforms offering noncompliant stablecoins are scheduled to apply in July 2028.

Why it matters

Final rules would give issuers clearer requirements for reserve backing, regulatory supervision and redemption. USAT, which Tether launched in January 2026 as a US-regulated product separate from USDT, was designed around these requirements. It uses Anchorage Digital Bank as issuer and Cantor Fitzgerald to manage reserves, and by July 2026 it had expanded to Celo with a market capitalization of about $185 million.

For USDT holders and traders, the outcome matters because USDT is issued from outside the US and its treatment depends on the foreign-issuer pathway and the pending Treasury determination. The framework also comes amid scrutiny of Tether's connections to the legislative process, including a recent report on payments to a consulting firm tied to former White House crypto adviser Bo Hines, who later became CEO of USAT. Participants may watch whether the final rules and any further delays change the compliance picture for US platforms.

Key details

• Date: November 2026 (month precision; tentative target, exact day not confirmed)
• Project: Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
• Coins: USDT, USAT
• Category: Regulatory Deadline
• Status: Tentative
• Source: crypto.news (https://crypto.news/tether-paid-6-3m-to-firm-tied-to-former-trump-crypto-adviser-bo-hines-report/)