The GENIUS Act — a bill that would establish a comprehensive regulatory framework for US dollar-pegged stablecoins — advanced out of the Senate Banking Committee on a bipartisan 13-7 vote, clearing a major hurdle toward floor consideration.
The bill would require stablecoin issuers to maintain 1:1 reserves in high-quality liquid assets, obtain a federal or state license, submit to regular third-party audits, and implement robust AML compliance programs. It would also bar algorithmic stablecoins from marketing themselves as dollar-pegged.
Committee Chairman Senator Tom Parker praised the vote as “a historic step toward bringing clarity to digital dollar markets.” Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire called it “the most significant moment in US crypto policy since the ETF approvals.”
The bill now moves to the full Senate. Analysts at Bernstein Research said the legislation could catalyze the stablecoin market’s growth from its current $220 billion to over $1 trillion within five years of enactment.
