Treasury Proposes Strict AML Rules for Stablecoin Issuers

The United States Department of the Treasury issued a notice of proposed rulemaking on April 8, 2026, to implement the GENIUS Act. The proposal, coordinated by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and the Office of Foreign Assets Control, classifies permitted payment stablecoin issuers as financial institutions.

Under the proposed rules, these issuers must adhere to anti-money laundering, countering the financing of terrorism, and U.S. economic sanctions compliance obligations. This includes establishing a four-pillar AML/CFT program and monitoring suspicious transactions exceeding $5,000. Issuers must also maintain the technical capacity to freeze or block transactions as required.

Treasury introduces an affirmative requirement for U.S. companies to maintain a sanctions compliance program, with potential penalties for knowing violations reaching $200,000 per day. The agency proposes delegating examination authority to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the National Credit Union Administration.