| WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) released the following statement after final passage of the GENIUS Act, a bipartisan bill that creates a regulatory framework for stablecoins, a type of cryptocurrency that is pegged to currencies like the U.S. dollar or a commodity. “Today, I voted in favor of the GENIUS Act, a bipartisan bill that sets up the first American guardrails and consumer protections for stablecoins, a type of cryptocurrency, and ensures that the U.S. continues to lead the world on the issue. “Like any piece of legislation, this bill is not perfect. But it has undergone improvements over the past few weeks. That is important because the stablecoin industry is already estimated at $250 billion and growing. Many Americans have seen scammers demand payments in cryptocurrency and many nations are skipping traditional banking altogether. So Congress has an obligation to provide guardrails on this marketplace. “Importantly, this bill prevents Members of Congress and special government employees, like Elon Musk, from profiting off their own stablecoins. It also requires executive branch officials, including the President and their cabinet, and Members of Congress, to disclose stablecoin holdings. “There is currently no framework to regulate stablecoins in federal law. This bill lays down the first guardrails to do just that, and like we do for every other industry in America, those guardrails can and should be updated over time. This bill represents a good-faith, bipartisan start.” Slotkin has long been an advocate for transparency, ethics and oversight, as well as the national security concerns in the crypto industry. She led the Cryptocurrency Accountability Act in the House, which codifies into law requirements that Members of Congress disclose cryptocurrency holdings, and she is a cosponsor of the End Crypto Corruption Act, which would explicitly prevent all federally elected officials, including the President, from starting their own cryptocurrency assets, including meme coins and stablecoins. How this bill relates to the Trump family stablecoin: Though this is about stablecoins, and not memecoins which President Trump did start on January 15, 2025, the President’s children do also control a stablecoin, launched in March of this year. This legislation would require the President’s children and all other stablecoin holders to comply with the federal laws and regulations laid out in this bill. The issue of the President and his family starting and selling his memecoin is being looked into as a potential violation of the Constitution’s Emoluments Clause, and will soon be taken up by the courts. Specifically, the GENIUS Act makes progress on the following key areas: Ethics and Conflicts of Interest: Prohibits Executive Branch officials and Members of Congress from issuing a stablecoin, and ensures that special government employees like Elon Musk cannot enrich themselves in the stablecoin market while serving in government. The bill also ensures that an individual who has been convicted of felony offenses involving financial crimes cannot be an executive at a stablecoin issuer. Consumer protections: The bill requires stablecoin issuers to comply with existing federal consumer protections laws, originally setup for the traditional banking sector. Issuers must comply with monthly audits and public disclosures of stablecoin reserves. Those who issue more than $50 billion or more in stablecoins are subject to annual audits and must disclose affiliated transactions. Foreign issuers: Closes a loophole that could have allowed unauthorized foreign stablecoin issuers to offer their products in the U.S. Requires the U.S. Treasury, the Federal Reserve, and the FDIC to determine that foreign issuers have the technological capability to comply with lawful orders. Places additional scrutiny and allows for the removal of any noncompliant foreign issuers from issuing stablecoins in the U.S. Requires foreign issuers to agree to United States jurisdiction for the purposes of enforcement. Money laundering: Stablecoin issuers must adhere to strict anti-money-laundering requirements, sanctions compliance, and requirements under the Bank Secrecy Act. Prohibits foreign issuers from trading in the U.S. if they are located in a country that is subject to economic sanctions by the U.S. or if the Treasury Secretary determines that a foreign country is a primary money laundering concern. It also requires issuers to prove they can freeze and block illicit transactions, specifically addressing fraud, cybercrime, terrorism finance, and sanctions evasion. Limitations on Big Tech issuers: Prohibits non-financial publicly traded companies, like Meta and Amazon, from issuing stablecoins unless they can meet strict criteria that avoids risk, protects consumer data privacy, and ensures fair business practices. Strict oversight: Only federally regulated banks and licensed non-bank entities are allowed to issue stablecoin under strict oversight from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and the Federal Reserve. Bankruptcy: The bill clarifies and strengthens bankruptcy protections for consumers. Holders of stablecoins are given superpriority status, meaning claimants have the right to quickly recover their money before the issuer in the unlikely event of an insolvency. ### |
