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Circle Shareholder Targets Donald Trump’s Alleged Crypto Corruption in Lawsuit

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Circle Shareholder Targets Donald Trump’s Alleged Crypto Corruption in Lawsuit

Update (Oct. 22, 10:27 pm UTC): This article has been updated to include a statement from the White House.

A shareholder for Circle Internet Financial, the company behind the USDC (USDC) stablecoin, filed a lawsuit against US President Donald Trump, his family’s crypto company World Liberty Financial, affiliate entities, and US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff over a $2 billion deal between a foreign government entity and Binance.

In a Thursday filing in the US District Court for the District of Columbia, Circle shareholder J. Benjamin Greenberg alleged that Trump, Witkoff and World Liberty caused harm to Circle by creating a pathway for foreign governments to funnel money using the Trump family crypto company’s USD1 stablecoin. This “brazen corruption,” according to Greenberg, leaves Circle “unable to compete” in the stablecoin market with its USDC.

Central to the Circle shareholder’s allegations is an Abu Dhabi entity, MGX, tied to the United Arab Emirates royalty, which invested $2 billion into cryptocurrency exchange Binance using the USD1 stablecoin in 2025. The Wall Street Journal reported in February that another investment vehicle backed by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan agreed to purchase a 49% stake in World Liberty for $500 million.

“By accepting hundreds of millions of dollars from a foreign government, the President and his companies have diverted business from [Circle],” alleged Greenberg, adding:

“Plaintiff asks this Court to declare the President’s corrupt acts a violation of the Constitution, to enjoin the brazen corruption alleged below, to order an accounting of the billions in payments from foreign states to the President and his businesses, to require the companies holding them to disgorge the emoluments the President accepted through them, and for compensatory and punitive damages.”

Related: Trump didn‘t mention ‘crypto’ once in White House cybercrime roundtable

Greenberg reported holding 10,000 ordinary shares of Circle as part of his reasons for the lawsuit. He petitioned the court to declare that Trump violated the US Constitution’s Foreign Emoluments Clause through the crypto deals and to issue injunctions preventing the president and Witkoff from pursuing similar financial interests without Congress’ consent.

Zach Witkoff, the son of the Witkoff named in the lawsuit, is a World Liberty co-founder. Trump and his three sons are also co-founders of the crypto venture.

A Circle spokesperson told Cointelegraph that the company “did not initiate, direct, authorize, or participate in the filing,” declining to comment on pending litigation. White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said that Trump had “no conflicts of interest“ with his crypto investments, calling the lawsuit “frivolous.“ A spokesperson for World Liberty did not respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit.

Democrats use ’corruption’ messaging as midterm elections approach

The US president and his family are tied to several crypto ventures that Trump reported netted him $1.4 billion in 2025, while also costing investors about $4.7 billion, according to reporting by the nonprofit consumer advocacy organization Public Citizen. The crypto ventures are just a few of many controversial deals Trump faces scrutiny over, including accepting a jet from the government of Qatar.

With less than two weeks until the 2026 midterms and early voting having already started in some US states, Democrats running for reelection are using Trump’s crypto deals as a wedge issue for voters to support candidates in their party. Last week, Senator Mark Warner released a campaign ad highlighting that the president made ”more than $600 million alone from the crypto memecoin.”

Magazine: Richard Heart caught ‘off-guard,’ QDay gets even closer: Hodler’s Digest

Winklevoss-Backed PAC Backs Paxton in Texas Senate Race

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Winklevoss-Backed PAC Backs Paxton in Texas Senate Race

Digital Freedom Fund, the Super political action committee (PAC) launched by Gemini co-founders Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss in 2025, announced additional expenditures for US Senate races in the 2026 midterm elections, attempting to influence voters in Texas, Iowa and Ohio.

In a Tuesday filing with the US Federal Election Commission (FEC), the Digital Freedom Fund reported its first spending on ads to support Republican candidate Ken Paxton for one of Texas’ Senate seats. According to the PAC, it had spent more than $81,000 on direct mail media to support Paxton and oppose Democratic candidate James Talarico, with early voting having already begun in the state.

The Winklevoss-backed Super PAC, which reported raising about $34 million as of Sept. 30, did not limit its spending to Texas, reporting involvement in other key midterm election races using ads. Digital Freedom Fund reported additional expenditures in Ohio’s Senate race between Republican Jon Husted and Democrat Sherrod Brown, bringing the PAC’s total support for Husted to about $7 million.

The expenditures into candidates that could support crypto policies and laws come as event contracts on prediction market platforms Kalshi and Polymarket heavily favored Democrats retaking majority control of the House of Representatives and Senate in 2027. Whichever party holds a majority in each chamber would have a significant impact on passing legislation like the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, a market structure bill that failed to pass a procedure vote in the Senate last month.

Related: PACs laud Texas primary wins, look to back more pro-crypto candidates

Paxton already benefitted from $500,000 in supportive ads ahead of the May Republican primary, in which he defeated incumbent Senator John Cornyn. The ads, funded by the Anchorage Digital- and Cantor Fitzgerald-backed Fellowship PAC, went through the Nxum Group, a marketing company co-founded by Bo Hines, a former crypto adviser to US President Donald Trump who became CEO of Tether US after leaving the White House.

According to an October Wall Street Journal report, Nxum profited from Hines’ role in government, as he helped push a stablecoin bill while keeping a stake in the company. Nxum reportedly received $6.3 million as part of a deal with stablecoin issuer Tether, the first payment of which went through while Hines was still at the White House.

Early voting began in Texas on Oct. 19, with Election Day coming up on Nov. 3. Cointelegraph reached out to the Talarico and Paxton campaign teams for comment but did not receive an immediate response.

Spending escalates in Ohio Senate race with Fairshake PAC

Fairshake, a separate PAC aligned with the interests of the crypto industry and largely funded by Ripple Labs, Coinbase and Andreessen Horowitz, reported more than $13 million combined in spending on a direct mail campaign to support what it considered to be “pro-crypto” candidates this week. The PAC’s latest FEC filing showed more than $4 million to oppose Independent candidate Dan Osborn in Nebraska’s Senate race and an additional $9 million to support Husted over Brown.

While the battle for Ohio’s Senate between Brown and Husted has seen significant spending by PACs — Fairshake had invested about $56 million as of Wednesday and Digital Freedom Fund reported $7 million in total media purchases — Texas races have also spawned interest from Republican donors looking to prevent the state potentially losing Senate and gubernatorial seats to Democrats for the first time in more than 30 years. 

FEC filings showed that Elon Musk, the world’s richest person and founder of SpaceX, had poured more than $150 million into the Senate Leadership Fund. The PAC, supporting Republican Senate candidates, sent the same amount Musk donated to the Texas PAC, which has supported Paxton through ads.

Magazine: 5 alternatives to Ledger to store your Bitcoin

Irish cenbank fines Coinbase arm $3.6M for oversight, safeguard failures

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Irish cenbank fines Coinbase arm $3.6M for oversight, safeguard failures

According to the Central Bank of Ireland, Coinbase Ireland had agreed with the facts around the enforcement action and will be subject to fines and sanctions upon approval by a high court.

Opinion꞉ The UK Needs a Workable Route to Regulated DeFi Access

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Opinion꞉ The UK Needs a Workable Route to Regulated DeFi Access

Opinion by Katie Harries, head of policy, Europe, Coinbase

The United Kingdom is approaching a choice that could define its financial future: should decentralized finance (DeFi) be allowed to develop through regulated gateways or will it be constrained to a silo?

This is not just relevant to crypto enthusiasts; it goes to the future of capital markets, the competitiveness of the City and the UK’s ability to shape the next generation of financial infrastructure.

DeFi is software that lets people borrow, lend and trade directly with one another without relying on an intermediary like a bank or broker. It works less like a financial institution and more like the internet, promising cheaper, faster financial services that are accessible to everyone, anytime.

While DeFi will always be accessible through open-source or decentralized routes, regulated providers can also offer a route to DeFi, allowing customers to engage with the technology while receiving key information about the services they are accessing and the risks they should be aware of.

However, the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) proposed crypto rules could make this impossible. The FCA will expect regulated platforms to ensure customer orders are only executed on an FCA-authorized venue. While this is designed to prevent overseas firms from illegally accessing the UK market, it also risks blocking off access to DeFi because the decentralized protocols and exchanges where users execute orders do not have a person behind them who could become authorized.

Overview of FCA’s cryptoassets regime policy statements. Source: FCA

No rule explicitly says that firms cannot offer DeFi integrations to their customers; however, the FCA has made clear that it is not seeking to provide rules specific to these products, opting instead to apply the same rules as to fully centralized trading. The effect could be a de facto ban.

From October 2027, regulated platforms may no longer be able to provide customers access to DeFi services unless the FCA changes its approach.

The government has pledged it wants the UK to “lead the world on digital assets.” It will struggle to realize this ambition if British firms are cut off from the decentralized infrastructure digital asset markets are built on.

Related: UK FCA sets crypto authorization guidance ahead of September application window

DeFi is becoming part of the next financial infrastructure

Regulators in other jurisdictions recognize the opportunities and are exploring ways to enable DeFi innovation. In the European Union, the European Securities and Markets Authority has proposed allowing regulated firms to provide access to DeFi, saying it could “allow innovation in decentralized finance in a regulated and transparent environment.”

In September, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission granted an “Innovation Exemption” for the trading of tokenized stocks peer-to-peer, using automated trading systems and liquidity pools.

In short, the US and EU are exploring how traditional finance and DeFi infrastructure can work together. The UK should be exploring the same potential before it closes off this option completely.

Onchain tokenized finance cannot reach its full potential if it is confined to closed and fragmented systems that struggle to interact with the decentralized technology that underpins them.

A de facto ban may push DeFi beyond the regulator’s reach

The UK has set out its first full rulebook for crypto regulation. From Oct. 25, 2027, firms offering crypto services to UK customers will need authorization from the FCA. The FCA is now consulting on guidance on how its rules will apply to firms that provide financial services that use or interact with DeFi.

Potential concerns around DeFi integrations are threefold. First, a customer using a familiar regulated platform may not realize when they have moved into an environment where the usual protections do not apply. Second, certain firms could use DeFi integrations to avoid regulatory obligations. Third, DeFi could bring risks related to financial crime and market resilience.

The UK wants to lead the world on digital assets. Source: Gov.uk

But these risks point to the need for clear information for consumers and responsibilities for firms — not a prohibition.

A de facto ban would produce the opposite of its intended effect. It would not eliminate DeFi. Instead, it would push more activity beyond the FCA’s practical visibility and reduce regulated firms’ ability to shape how customers interact with it.

Regulated platforms can provide a useful point for supervision. They can make clear to customers when they are leaving a regulated environment and require their consent before allowing this. Regulated firms can also curate access to selected protocols, assess operational and governance risks, and report incidents and usage to regulators.

Regulate the gateway, not the technology

The UK already recognizes, in other areas of finance, that regulated institutions can provide access to products or markets that do not carry the same level of oversight.

Many retail trading platforms or so-called “super apps” now offer consumers access to a range of products, from stocks and money market funds to commodities and foreign exchange, with different regulatory protections. The FCA permits this, as long as platforms make clear to consumers which protections apply to different products and services.

This is why DeFi integrations require a better solution. The FCA should protect consumers, but it should not seek to achieve protection with total exclusion.

Responsible integration would give consumers clearer information, give supervisors greater visibility and give UK financial services the chance to compete in the next phase of financial innovation.

Related: ESMA seeks evidence tokenized collateral can be cashed out in crisis

Consumers will use DeFi, so the question is where

DeFi protocols can already be accessed directly without the use of regulated firms. The question is whether consumers will also be able to access DeFi through a regulated gateway, with clear disclosures and guardrails.

The stakes are broader than crypto trading. DeFi underpins the greatest potential cost savings as financial services move onchain, with fewer costly intermediaries and systems that support 24/7 activity across borders. Regulation that provides a clear route to support DeFi is crucial to give firms the confidence to invest in UK innovation in the long term.

If barriers to access are imposed in the UK, tokenized capital markets and financial innovation more broadly could develop in countries that are decisive in supporting DeFi infrastructure.

The UK cannot credibly aspire to lead in digital finance while closing off the decentralized infrastructure on which the future of finance is being built.

About the author: Katie Harries is the head of policy for Europe at Coinbase. Katie leads on international policy, engaging with regulators, governments and industry stakeholders to shape a regulatory environment that fosters growth, competition and responsible oversight for digital assets in the UK and Europe. Prior to joining Coinbase, Katie was a VP at Goldman Sachs. Katie is also heavily involved in the UK Cryptoasset Business Council (UKCBC), the country’s leading crypto trade body.

Magazine: Made an ‘honest’ mistake with crypto taxes? New bill offers way out

OCC Finalizes US Stablecoin Rules as Bessent Hails GENIUS Act

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OCC Finalizes US Stablecoin Rules as Bessent Hails GENIUS Act

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has compared the Trump administration’s landmark stablecoin legislation to banking reforms enacted under President Abraham Lincoln, drawing parallels between two efforts to establish a national framework for American currency more than 160 years apart.

In a Wednesday post on X, Bessent hailed the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s (OCC) final rule implementing the GENIUS Act, calling the legislation a “watershed moment in American finance.”

Bessent drew a comparison to the National Currency Act of 1863, which established a federal framework for nationally chartered banks to issue currency. He argued that the GENIUS Act serves a similar purpose for payment stablecoins in the digital age.

Bessent said the OCC rule would support “private-sector innovation, competition, and American leadership in digital assets.”

Source: Scott Bessent

As Cointelegraph reported Wednesday, the OCC finalized rules governing stablecoin reserves, redemptions and related services. The rules are scheduled to take effect on Jan. 18, 2027.

Jonathan Gould, comptroller of the currency, described the regulations as a “clear, practical framework for payment stablecoin innovation.”

Related: Mastercard launches stablecoin risk screening for banks and payment providers

What the OCC’s stablecoin rules mean for issuers

The GENIUS Act, signed into law in 2025, established a federal regulatory framework for payment stablecoins. The OCC’s final rule sets out how that framework will apply to issuers under its supervision, including requirements for reserves, redemptions and risk management.

Beginning Jan. 18, 2027, companies issuing payment stablecoins in the United States will generally need regulatory approval under the GENIUS Act. Issuing stablecoins without the required authorization could carry penalties.

The OCC said the final rule covers national banks, federal savings associations, federal branches of foreign banks and nonbank companies seeking approval to issue payment stablecoins under federal supervision. It also covers certain foreign payment stablecoin issuers.

The rules come as dollar-denominated stablecoins gain traction for payments and money transfers, even as growth in their overall supply has stalled.

Related: Stablecoin remittances cost 84% less than traditional transfers, report finds

Bitget Advances Institutional RWA Strategy Super Match Liquidity Framework

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Bitget Advances Institutional RWA Strategy Super Match Liquidity Framework

Global, October 22, 2026 : Bitget, the world’s largest Universal Exchange (UEX), has outlined the next phase of its real-world asset (RWA) strategy, expanding beyond direct market access for tokenized equities toward an institutional-grade liquidity framework. Powered by Bitget’s Super Match engine, a liquidity and price-discovery framework that connects internal trading flows, market makers, and multiple liquidity sources, the platform aims to provide deeper liquidity, efficient price discovery, and greater trading flexibility for rTokens beyond traditional market hours.  

The development reflects a shift in Bitget’s approach to tokenized equities. While the initial phase of rTokens focused on providing digital access to US stocks and ETFs, the next phase focuses on expanding liquidity participation by enabling market makers to participate directly in the rToken ecosystem. This includes enabling eligible securities to move between traditional brokerage accounts and the Bitget ecosystem, connecting multiple sources of liquidity, and developing more resilient price discovery beyond reliance on a single traditional market venue.

Broker Interoperability serves as the entry layer of this framework. On October 13, Bitget is launching rToken Transfer, its first product under this layer, allowing eligible U.S.-listed stocks and ETFs held at external brokers to enter the Bitget RWA ecosystem. Supporting more than 3,000 eligible assets, the service establishes a pathway for existing equity portfolios to participate in tokenized markets without requiring investors to first liquidate their holdings.

“The next phase of tokenization will be defined by the infrastructure that allows assets and liquidity to move across markets,” said Gracy Chen, CEO of Bitget. “Providing access to tokenized equities was a key starting point. Now we’re focused on connecting existing brokerage assets with deeper liquidity and more flexible ways to deploy capital. Broker Interoperability creates a pathway for those assets to enter our ecosystem, while Super Match is designed to improve how liquidity and price discovery function once they’re there. This is central to our Universal Exchange vision of bringing traditional and digital assets together within a unified trading ecosystem, where capital can move move efficiently across asset classes. Our longer-term goal is to make tokenized equities more useful to both institutional and retail participants, including through broader collateral and capital-management applications.”

Through rToken Transfer, users initiate a Free of Payment (FOP) securities transfer from their external broker to Bitget’s designated Alpaca omnibus account. Once the securities are received and processed, Bitget’s In-Kind Tokenization Network (ITN) automatically converts them into corresponding rTokens, which are credited to the user’s Bitget spot account. The process reduces manual conversion requirements and provides a standardized entry point for eligible traditional securities into the digital asset ecosystem.

The second layer, Super Match, is designed to address liquidity and execution as participation in tokenized equities expands. The framework aims to connect Bitget’s internal trading flows, market-maker participation and internalized trading capabilities with multiple sources of price discovery. By bringing these components together, Bitget intends to support deeper liquidity, more efficient execution and a market structure that can accommodate trading activity beyond conventional equity market sessions where supported. Actual liquidity, pricing and trading availability will remain subject to market conditions, supported assets and applicable product terms.

Together, the two layers establish a longer-term framework for improving capital efficiency across tokenized equity markets. Once eligible securities enter Bitget as rTokens, supported assets may be used for spot trading and, where available, margin-related functions, borrowing and lending, earn products and other ecosystem applications. This creates the potential for equity holdings to serve a wider range of financial purposes, including collateral use as supported functionality develops, subject to asset eligibility, jurisdictional restrictions and applicable terms.

The strategy builds on the expansion of Bitget’s rToken ecosystem through Reality, its RWA issuance platform. By July 6, rToken assets under management had reached approximately US$114 million, while cumulative transactions had surpassed two million. The introduction of Broker Interoperability and the development of Super Match represent the next stage in connecting that growing tokenized asset base with broader market liquidity and institutional participation.

For more information about Bitget RWA and rToken Transfer, visit here.

About Bitget

Bitget is the world’s largest Universal Exchange (UEX), serving over 125 million users and offering access to over 2M crypto tokens, 500+ tokenized stocks, ETFs, commodities, FX, and precious metals such as gold. The ecosystem is committed to helping users trade smarter with its AI agent, which co-pilots trade execution. Bitget is driving crypto adoption through strategic partnerships such as MotoGP™. Aligned with its global impact strategy, Bitget has joined hands with UNICEF to support blockchain education for 1.1 million people by 2027. Bitget currently leads in the tokenized TradFi market, providing the industry’s lowest fees and highest liquidity across 150 regions worldwide.

Source: Bitget

UK financial watchdog opens consultations for DeFi guidance, crypto laws

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UK financial watchdog opens consultations for DeFi guidance, crypto laws

The UK Financial Conduct Authority consultations came just weeks after the agency opened applications for companies under its new crypto regulatory regime.

Cardano Warns of Regulatory Overlap in EU Crypto Laws

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Cardano Warns of Regulatory Overlap in EU Crypto Laws

The Cardano Foundation has urged the European Union not to introduce new, standalone regulations for decentralized finance and staking, arguing that existing financial laws should govern such activities based on their functions and risks rather than the technologies they use.

In a Wednesday blog post outlining its 19-page Sept. 30 submission to the European Commission, the foundation called for a distinction between direct participation in decentralized networks and financial services provided by intermediaries, particularly those involving custody or control of users’ assets.

“Regulation should follow the substance of an activity, the functions performed, and the risks created, not the technology through which it is conducted,” the foundation wrote.

The foundation said Cardano users can delegate their native ADA (ADA) tokens to help secure the network without surrendering custody or locking their tokens, arguing that such participation should be treated differently from staking services operated by intermediaries.

The submission also called for clearer distinctions between the EU’s Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCA) and existing financial laws, warning that overlapping requirements and inconsistent interpretations across member states could create uncertainty for crypto businesses.

The foundation’s position comes as EU regulators consider expanding oversight of crypto services. In September, the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) recommended additional safeguards for staking, lending and borrowing, along with a new regulated service category for firms providing access to DeFi protocols.

The Cardano Foundation has also pushed for greater regulatory clarity across the Atlantic, joining five other blockchain organizations in an Oct. 20 letter urging the US Securities and Exchange Commission to formally recognize digital commodities as non-securities under its proposed crypto framework.

Magazine: Can the SEC and CFTC’s pro-crypto rules be overturned? Legal opinion

White House Roundtable Focuses on Fighting Cybercrime

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White House Roundtable Focuses on Fighting Cybercrime

US President Donald Trump hosted a roundtable at the White House on cybercrime, even as he and members of his administration face scrutiny from lawmakers and voters over accusations that they used their positions to enrich themselves with digital assets. 

Speaking at the roundtable event on Wednesday, Trump said “countless” Americans lost more than $20 billion from cybercrime in 2025 through impersonation schemes, ransomware attacks, scam centers and other methods. The president added that federal officials had frozen $1 billion in “cybercurrency tied to foreign scammers” and prevented $1.6 billion in losses in 2025 from going to criminals engaging in cybercrime following a March executive order.

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (left), President Donald Trump (center) and Attorney General Todd Blanche (right) speaking at the White House on Wednesday. Source: White House

Notably, neither the president nor Attorney General Todd Blanche explicitly used the term “cryptocurrency” or “digital assets” when discussing the scams affecting many Americans, despite reports before the roundtable signaling a crackdown on foreign crypto scams would be the focus of the event. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin similarly only referred to “digital extortion.” “Cybercurrency,” the word Trump used, is a dated term for what many people now call cryptocurrency.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation reported that Americans had lost $11 billion from scams in 2025 specifically related to digital assets, including through crypto ATMs. Cointelegraph reached out to the White House for comment on the roundtable but did not receive an immediate response.

Related: Ex-Trump crypto adviser profited after helping pass stablecoin bill: WSJ

The president and his family are tied to several crypto ventures which Trump reported netted him $1.4 billion in 2025, while his alleged “schemes” cost investors about $4.7 billion, according to a Public Citizen report. His family’s crypto company, World Liberty Financial, also faces scrutiny for its USD1 stablecoin being used to settle a $2 billion investment in Binance by an entity tied to Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan in the United Arab Emirates. 

Trump’s memecoin project, Official Trump (TRUMP), is hosting another dinner for tokenholders on Nov. 22. Similar events organized by the team behind the memecoin have prompted accusations from lawmakers and interest groups of Trump selling access to the presidency through “pay-to-play” schemes.

Italian police arrest 30 people in crypto money laundering scheme

The White House roundtable followed reports that Italian authorities arrested 30 people for using crypto to launder millions of dollars through a bank allegedly tied to the mafia. According to Bloomberg, Italy’s police were investigating a criminal network that sent money from corporate fraud, crypto investment scams, and drug trafficking to digital wallets.

Magazine: Can the SEC and CFTC’s pro-crypto rules be overturned? Legal opinion

Banking Groups Push Back on OCC’s Finalized GENIUS Rules on Stablecoin Yield

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Banking Groups Push Back on OCC’s Finalized GENIUS Rules on Stablecoin Yield

A lobbying group for US banks has weighed in on the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s (OCC’s) recently finalized rules on payment stablecoin issuance and custody, arguing that the regulator’s interpretation went against Congress’ intent.

In a Wednesday notice, the American Bankers Association (ABA) said that while the OCC’s final rules implementing the GENIUS Act included “several positive steps,” the banking group remained critical of provisions related to stablecoin yield. The regulator dropped a provision that would have established a presumption that certain third-party arrangements violated the law’s ban on yield payments.

“The final rule removes the OCC’s originally proposed safeguards that would have addressed indirect arrangements involving affiliates, exchanges and other distribution partners,” said ABA. “As a result, payment stablecoin issuers can provide economically equivalent yield while technically avoiding the statutory prohibition. The OCC also declined to adopt a broader presumption against arrangements designed to circumvent the ban.”

The group added:

“Those gaps risk undermining the distinction Congress drew between payment stablecoins and traditional bank deposits, threatening the funds banks use to make the loans that drive the US economy.”

Stablecoin rewards were one of the key issues lawmakers and interest groups debated before and after GENIUS passed Congress in July 2025, and they continue to face scrutiny amid discussions of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, a crypto market structure bill currently in limbo after a failed procedure vote in the Senate last month.

Notably, the Blockchain Association approved of the change to yield prohibition, arguing that the OCC “[brought] the final rule more closely in line with the statutory text.” The Bank Policy Institute, another banking industry advocacy group, largely sided with ABA, saying that “the decision to omit the yield presumption replaces clarity with ambiguity and puts the banking system and its customers at risk of deposit flight.”

The OCC finalized its rules ahead of the GENIUS Act’s implementation in January 2027. Other government departments are expected to release rules on GENIUS related to their agencies’ purview over stablecoins, including the Federal Reserve and Treasury.

Related: ABA, state banking groups push back on CLARITY Act stablecoin yield provisions

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