The U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) released draft proposals that would establish new rules for stablecoins and define how U.S. companies should account for them in their financial statements.
The U.S. Treasury issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) outlining proposed rules to implement Section 3 of the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act. The proposal sets requirements for the issuance, offering, and sale of payment stablecoins. At the same time, FASB released a proposed Accounting Standards Update (ASU) to the Statement of Cash Flows (Topic 230). The proposal clarifies when certain stablecoins may qualify as cash equivalents under U.S. GAAP. Both documents are now open for public comment.
The Treasury proposal is intended to implement the GENIUS Act and establish a unified framework for issuers seeking access to the U.S. market. Under the proposal, once the law takes effect, only federally licensed issuers or issuers licensed under state frameworks recognized by federal authorities will be allowed to issue payment stablecoins in the U.S. Foreign companies would be subject to separate requirements. They would need the technical capability to comply with lawful requests from U.S. authorities, follow the international cooperation mechanisms established under the GENIUS Act, and register with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC).
The U.S. president signed the GENIUS Act into law in July 2025. Under the current implementation timeline, the law’s key provisions are scheduled to take effect on January 18, 2027. Additional restrictions on the offering and sale of stablecoins in the U.S. are scheduled to take effect on July 18, 2028.
The Treasury proposal also introduces requirements for digital asset service providers. Exchanges, brokers, and custodians would be allowed to rely on statements made by foreign issuers only after conducting due diligence, which must include:
- confirmation that the stablecoin isn’t subject to a ban on secondary market trading in the U.S.;
- a review of publicly available information about the issuer;
- an assessment of any other information that may indicate the issuer can’t comply with U.S. legal requirements.
If information indicates that an issuer doesn’t meet the law’s requirements, distribution of its stablecoins would be prohibited.
The proposal also clarifies which activities by digital asset service providers would constitute the offering or sale of stablecoins in the U.S. market. According to the Treasury, these activities include:
- directly soliciting customers located in the U.S.;
- advertising stablecoins to U.S. audiences;
- recommending methods to bypass geographic restrictions;
entering into a contract for the purchase or sale of stablecoins, regardless of the payment method or the timing of token delivery.
At the same time, FASB proposed changes intended to eliminate inconsistencies in accounting practices related to digital assets. The board doesn’t change the definition of cash equivalents under U.S. GAAP. Instead, it provides guidance that allows companies to evaluate whether specific stablecoins meet the existing criteria.
Under the proposal, a fiat-backed stablecoin could qualify as a cash equivalent only if all 3 of the following conditions are met:
- The holder has a contractual right to redeem the asset on demand.
- The issuer provides direct redemption of the tokens at a fixed value.
- The issuer maintains segregated reserves of at least 1:1 relative to the number of tokens issued, and those reserves consist of short-term, highly liquid assets.
The proposal also includes practical examples illustrating how the guidance would apply. For example, a stablecoin that offers direct redemption through the issuer and is backed by cash and short-term U.S. Treasury securities could qualify as a cash equivalent. However, a similar asset wouldn’t qualify if investors could sell it only on the secondary market or if its reserves consisted of crypto assets or gold.
Another proposed change concerns disclosure requirements. Companies that classify assets as cash equivalents would be required to disclose the main categories and amounts of those assets each year, including U.S. Treasury securities, commercial paper, money market funds, and stablecoins. According to FASB, the change would improve reporting transparency and bring U.S. GAAP requirements are closer to international IFRS standards.
Both proposals remain in the consultation stage. Comments on the Treasury proposal will be accepted for 60 days after its publication in the Federal Register. The FASB comment period will remain open through November 19, 2026.
Earlier, U.S. financial regulators proposed stricter requirements for payment stablecoin issuers by requiring them to verify customers and screen them against government sanctions and counterterrorism watchlists. At the same time, lawmakers introduced the PARITY Act in Congress to update tax rules for the digital asset market.
