Bank Lobby Presses OCC For Clarity On Stablecoin Rewards After Final Rule

A final stablecoin rule has not ended the argument over rewards. The Bank Policy Institute used its October 24 newsletter to renew criticism of how the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency will judge arrangements that pay stablecoin holders through third parties. TL;DR BPI says case-by-case decisions leave stablecoin reward arrangements unclear. The dispute concerns implementation of the issuer yield prohibition. The OCC says its broader GENIUS Act rule takes effect January 18, 2027. The disagreement is about how the prohibition is applied In the newsletter, BPI repeated its October 21 response to the final rule. The banking trade group objects to removal of a proposed presumption covering certain issuer arrangements with third parties. It says the replacement approach lacks a clear process for explaining decisions and making outcomes public. This is a lobbying position from an organization representing banks. Its concern about deposits moving into stablecoins is a forecast about competitive and financial effects, rather than evidence that the newly finalized rule has already caused a measurable outflow. The OCC’s announcement presents the rule as a framework covering reserve ...