Treasury sets rules for states to supervise smaller stablecoin issuers under GENIUS Act
The US Treasury published an interim final rule letting states oversee stablecoin issuers under $10B, if their regime is certified 'substantially similar' to the federal framework. What the GENIUS Act path changes.
The US Department of the Treasury has published an interim final rule laying out how states can win federal approval to supervise smaller stablecoin issuers under the GENIUS Act, a key step in standing up the law’s dual federal-state structure. According to the Lowenstein Crypto Brief dated 1 October 2026, the rule was issued on 30 September and sets out the forms and procedures states must follow to qualify.
Who can choose state regulation
Under the GENIUS Act, as described in the reporting, state-qualified issuers with no more than $10 billion in outstanding payment stablecoins may opt for state regulation rather than defaulting to the federal regime. Larger issuers — those above the threshold — fall under federal supervision.
To be eligible, a state regulator must certify that its own regime is “substantially similar” to the federal framework. That certification is not automatic: per Lowenstein, it is subject to approval by a Stablecoin Certification Review Committee whose members include the Treasury Secretary, the Federal Reserve Chair and the head of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
Stablecoins and the securities question
The reporting also notes a point that matters for how these tokens are treated across US law: payment stablecoins issued by permitted payment stablecoin issuers will not qualify as securities by operation of statute after the GENIUS Act’s effective date. That classification shapes which regulator has jurisdiction and what disclosure rules apply.
For the underlying concepts — reserve backing, independent attestations and redemption rights — our evergreen explainer on stablecoin regulation breaks down the three pillars regulators focus on worldwide.
What it means in practice
For users and issuers, the interim rule sketches a clearer compliance map:
- Smaller issuers get a defined route to remain under a familiar state regulator, provided that state meets the federal bar.
- A federal backstop remains, because certification runs through a committee of senior federal officials.
- A consistent floor emerges, since “substantially similar” state regimes must track the federal standard rather than diverge from it.
Stablecoins also sit inside the broader transfer-compliance picture; see our explainer on the crypto Travel Rule for how information-sharing obligations apply when coins move between parties.
The bottom line
The Treasury’s interim final rule turns the GENIUS Act’s dual-track design into something operational: states can supervise stablecoin issuers under $10 billion if their regimes are certified “substantially similar” to the federal one, with a senior federal committee holding the final say. According to the Lowenstein Crypto Brief, this is procedural groundwork — the practical effect will depend on which states seek certification and how the committee applies the standard.
News summary based on reporting cited above. Rules vary and evolve; this is not legal or financial advice.