What do the new stablecoin laws in the US and the EU require?
The US GENIUS Act, signed on 18 July 2025, takes effect on 18 January 2027, the OCC says. From then, only approved issuers may issue payment stablecoins, with one-to-one reserves, monthly reserve reports and no interest to holders.1,2 The EU's MiCA law treats a stablecoin tied to one currency as an e-money token, which must be redeemable at par at any time.3
This lesson is general education, not legal advice. It summarises laws and official statements as we read them on 22 October 2026. Rules are still being written: in October 2026 a US bank regulator issued its final GENIUS Act rule and said anti-money-laundering rules would follow separately.2 Laws change, and how they apply depends on the facts of each case.
United States: the GENIUS Act
The Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act, or GENIUS Act, became law on 18 July 2025.1 It regulates "payment stablecoins": digital assets used, or designed to be used, for payment or settlement, whose issuer must redeem them for a fixed amount of money.1 Its definition leaves out national currencies, bank deposits and securities.1
The main rules for an issuer, once the Act takes effect, are these.1
- Only approved issuers. It is unlawful for anyone other than a "permitted payment stablecoin issuer" to issue a payment stablecoin in the US.1 The Act makes an exception for some foreign issuers whose home rules the US Treasury finds comparable.1
- One-to-one reserves. Issuers must hold reserves of at least one dollar per token, in a set list of assets. The list includes cash, bank deposits, US Treasury securities due within 93 days and certain overnight repo deals.1
- Monthly reports. Issuers must publish the make-up of their reserves every month. An accounting firm must examine each report, and the chief executive and finance chief must certify it.1
- Clear redemption. Issuers must publish a redemption policy and all fees in plain language, and give 7 days' notice before changing fees.1
- No interest. Issuers may not pay holders interest or yield just for holding the stablecoin.1
- Audits for the largest. An issuer with more than $50 billion outstanding that does not already file reports with the SEC must publish audited annual financial statements.1
The Act also sets out what holders get, and don't get. It says payment stablecoins are not backed or guaranteed by the US government, and are not covered by federal deposit insurance.1 If an issuer goes bust, holders' claims on the required reserves come before other creditors' claims.1 And a payment stablecoin from a permitted issuer is not a security under the main US securities laws, or a commodity under the Commodity Exchange Act.1
When it starts. The Act takes effect 18 months after it became law, or 120 days after regulators issue final rules, whichever comes first.1 The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), which will oversee some permitted issuers, issued its final rule on 21 October 2026 and says the Act's effective date is 18 January 2027.2
European Union: MiCA
The EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation, known as MiCA, splits stablecoins into two kinds.3
| Type | What it references | Key rules |
|---|---|---|
| E-money token (EMT) | The value of one official currency, such as the euro or the dollar3 | Issued at par; holders can redeem at any time, at par, generally with no fee; no interest3 |
| Asset-referenced token (ART) | Another value or right, or a mix, which can include several currencies3 | Issuer must be authorised; no interest3 |
Only a bank (a "credit institution") or an electronic money institution may issue an e-money token in the EU, and it must first publish a white paper.3 The stablecoin rules applied from 30 June 2024, and the rest of MiCA from 30 December 2024.3
In January 2025, the EU securities regulator, ESMA, said crypto platforms should stop offering trading in stablecoins whose issuers are not authorised in the EU. It asked national regulators to make sure this happened by the end of March 2025.4
Hong Kong
Hong Kong's Stablecoins Ordinance took effect on 1 August 2025. Issuing stablecoins tied to an official currency is now a regulated activity there, and a licence is required.5 The Hong Kong Monetary Authority keeps a public register of licensed issuers.5 On 10 April 2026 it said it had granted issuer licences to two companies, Anchorpoint Financial Limited and The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, which planned to launch within a few months.6
The common thread
The FSB's 2023 recommendations for global stablecoins point the same way. They call for a robust legal claim and timely redemption for all users, at par for a stablecoin tied to one currency.7 They call for reserves at least equal to the coins in circulation.7
- Public Law 119-27: Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act (GENIUS Act). US Congress, via the US Government Publishing Office, 18 July 2025.
- GENIUS Act Regulations: Final Rule (OCC Bulletin 2026-50). Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, 21 October 2026.
- Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 on markets in crypto-assets (MiCA). European Parliament and Council of the European Union, Official Journal of the European Union (EUR-Lex), 31 May 2023.
- Public Statement on the provision of certain crypto-asset services in relation to non-MiCA compliant ARTs and EMTs. European Securities and Markets Authority, 17 January 2025.
- Regulatory Regime for Stablecoin Issuers. Hong Kong Monetary Authority, read 22 October 2026.
- Granting of stablecoin issuer licences (press release). Hong Kong Monetary Authority, 10 April 2026.
- High-level Recommendations for the Regulation, Supervision and Oversight of Global Stablecoin Arrangements: Final report. Financial Stability Board, 17 July 2023.
General education built from the publicly available sources listed above. Not financial, legal, tax or investment advice. Naming a company, project or regulator is not an endorsement either way. Last checked 2026-10-22. Terms and disclaimer.