Senator Hagerty announced the "GENIUS" Act - referencing it in a Tweet:
The full title of the Bill is -
"Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins of 2025’’
An announcement of the Bill can also be found at the page for the Senate Banking Committee
The full text of the bill can be viewed here:
https://www.hagerty.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/GENIUS-Act.pdf
For those unfamiliar with the progression of legislation in the United States, Bills may originate in a particular committee, and if they advance or pass the Committee will be forwarded to other Committee's for review and discussion. A bill can be "killed" in a committee. If a bill is approved by the relevant committees it may be finally brought to the floor for debate (theater) and a vote. This bill is originated in the Senate, so if it passes a floor vote it will eventually be forwarded to the U.S. House of Representative, who will repeat the process with their own committees. If any changes to the bill are made, the House has to send a bill back to the Senate to resolve differences. Eventually if the Bill passes through both chambers of Congress, it will be sent to the President for approval or veto. It is generally not a swift process, and may not fit into the legislative agenda that has already been established for this session.
Major Provisions of the "GENIUS" Act
A summary of the major provisions of the Bill were listed on the Committee page and quoted here:
Defines a payment stablecoin as a digital asset used for payment or settlement that is pegged to a fixed monetary value;
Establishes clear procedures for institutions seeking licenses to issue stablecoins;
Implements reserve requirements and light-touch, tailored regulatory standards for stablecoin issuers;
For issuers of more than $10 billion of stablecoins, applies the Federal Reserve’s regulatory framework to depository institutions and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s framework for nonbank issuers;
Allows for state regulation of issuers under $10 billion in market capitalization and provides a waiver process for issuers exceeding the threshold to remain state-regulated; and
Establishes supervisory, examination, and enforcement regimes with clear limitations.
What is the Impact on Hive?
Compliance for decentralized blockchains could be challenging. Non-compliant stablecoins could be potentially banned from U.S. regulated exchanges. The potential impact on Hive and HBD is not immediately clear.
Personal Action Plan
In my homestate of North Carolina - we have an upcoming election for Senate, the Senator up for election Thom Tillis may be amenable to input. I'm attending a function on thursday where my Congressional Representative (Brad Knott) will be present - and bend his ear for a moment. A Senate Bill still in committee is not likely on his radar at all yet, but I can at least introduce some concerns now.