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OCC leaves stablecoin rewards open under GENIUS Act

The OCC’s GENIUS Act rule leaves exchange-paid stablecoin rewards possible case by case, while issuers remain barred from paying holders interest directly.

BitCurrent Newsroom2 min read

OCC leaves stablecoin rewards open under GENIUS Act

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency finalized a GENIUS Act rule that leaves exchange-paid stablecoin rewards possible on a case-by-case basis. The law sets federal rules for payment stablecoins and bars issuers from paying holders interest directly.

  • The GENIUS Act was enacted on July 18, 2025.
  • The OCC’s final rule takes effect on January 18, 2027.
  • Coinbase offers up to 3.5% yield on USDC balances, compared with a 0.38% average for traditional savings accounts, according to FDIC figures cited by AP.

The Associated Press report says exchanges such as Coinbase and Robinhood may pass earnings from stablecoins to customers as rewards. The OCC’s final rule announcement confirms the implementation timetable and scope.

Who can pay rewards under the new rule?

Stablecoin issuers such as Circle remain prohibited from paying interest to people holding their coins. Exchanges that trade or hold those stablecoins can pass along earnings as rewards, but the OCC will assess the arrangements case by case, AP reported.

That distinction matters because the yield generally comes from interest earned on the deposits and U.S. Treasuries backing stablecoins. The reward reaches customers through an exchange rather than directly from the issuer.

What does the rule settle—and what remains open?

The rule does not grant blanket approval to every rewards program. CoinDesk reported that the final rule removed proposed “rebuttable presumptions” about activities that would violate the law, leaving the OCC to assess programs individually. Existing programs receive no special treatment.

The policy leaves a central dispute unresolved: banks say rewards could pull deposits from lenders and reduce their capacity to make loans. Crypto companies want to offer customers returns tied to stablecoin reserves. The OCC rule sets the regulatory framework, but how individual programs fare under case-by-case review remains open.

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