Senate votes to move forward on landmark stablecoin legislation
Quick Take
- Last week, no Democrats supported the bill amid concerns about provisions governing foreign issuers, anti-money laundering standards among other concerns.
- Movement on the stablecoin bill is one of Washington’s priorities this year.
In a second take, U.S. senators voted on Monday night to move forward with monumental legislation to regulate stablecoins.
Lawmakers voted 66-32 to invoke cloture — a procedural move that clears the way for further debate — on the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act, or GENIUS Act.
Several Democrats voted to move forward with the bill including Sens. Ruben Gallego, Catherine Cortez Masto, John Fetterman Mark Warner, Maggie Hassan, Adam Schiff. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer along with Sens. Dick Durbin, Amy Klobuchar, Elizabeth Warren and Andy Kim and others voted no.
Amanda Tuminelli, executive Director and chief legal officer of the DeFi Education Fund, said Monday's vote to move the bill forward was significant.
"Today’s vote is an important signal of progress toward creating clear rules for stablecoins in the United States," Tuminelli said in a statement.
Last week, no Democrats supported the bill, citing concerns over provisions related to foreign issuers, anti-money laundering standards, potential corporate issuance of stablecoins, and President Donald Trump’s deepening ties to crypto ventures, including one that recently launched a stablecoin.
Later that week, however, some Democrats touted wins following those negotiations involving big tech, consumer protections, and ethics, according to a document obtained by Punchbowl News. Those wins included ensuring that conflicts of interest standards would apply to "regular and special government employees, including Elon Musk." Still, the rules do not seem to apply to Trump, as Mark Hays, senior policy analyst at Americans for Financial Reform, said last week.
The Senate bill would require stablecoins to be fully backed by U.S. dollars or similarly liquid assets, mandate annual audits for issuers with more than $50 billion in market capitalization, and add language around foreign issuance. After the cloture vote, lawmakers need to take votes on changes to the bill and take steps to get a final vote on the bill.
Ahead of the vote, Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., voiced support for the bill, while also addressing his concerns about Trump's ties to crypto.
"We cannot allow that corruption to blind us to the broader reality: blockchain technology is here to stay," Warner said in a statement on Monday.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said the bill doesn't do enough to address Trump's crypto involvement and criticized USD1, the stablecoin recently launched by World Liberty Financial.
"The GENIUS Act will accelerate Trump’s corruption by supercharging the size of the stablecoin market and the reach and profitability of USD1," she said earlier on Monday.
Movement on the stablecoin bill is one of Washington's priorities this year. Lawmakers also want to pass a bill to regulate digital assets at large. House Republicans released a discussion draft earlier this month, which expands on work done over the years. It includes language around the Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission's authority while also looking to create a "pathway to raise funds under the SEC’s jurisdiction" and "clear process to register with the CFTC for digital commodity trading."
Some lawmakers have floated the idea of combining the two — the stablecoin and market structure bills.
Update: May 19, 1:35 a.m. UTC to include statements and final vote tally
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