US Senate Advances Stablecoin Bill GENIUS Act with 62-32 Vote

On May 19, the US Senate advanced the stablecoin bill known as the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins Act (GENIUS ACT) with a 62-32 procedural vote. The bill will now be debated before moving to the House of Representatives.

Key developments include:

Democratic Senators who previously opposed the bill, including Mark Warner, Adam Schiff, and Ruben Gallego, voted in favor.
Supporters are optimistic about passing the bill with only a simple majority needed.
Senator Cynthia Lummis anticipates the bill will pass by Memorial Day on May 26.
Concerns about Anti-Money Laundering provisions and conflicts of interest were raised but acknowledged by Warner as necessary to address blockchain technology's significance.

GENIUS Act Details

The GENIUS Act aims to establish a regulatory framework for USD-pegged stablecoins, focusing on:

Strict anti-money laundering (AML) and know-your-customer (KYC) protocols.
Issuers maintaining 1:1 reserves backed by U.S. dollars.
Preventing monopolistic practices by large tech firms.
Federal supervision for issuers with market caps over $10 billion.

Following Senate approval, the bill will face review and voting in the House, which is developing its own stablecoin legislation, the STABLE Act. Reconciling both bills may be crucial for achieving regulatory clarity.