On July 18, Trump signed the GENIUS Act into law.
The bill creates a regulatory framework for stablecoins, which is a type of cryptocurrency backed up by cash or Treasuries and fixed to the value of the dollar and other stable financial assets.
Crypto advocates have argued the law will protect consumers and set industry standards that could allow stablecoins to become mainstream for digital payments and other financial instruments.
USA Today
On paper, the bill cracks down on crypto-related corruption both at home and abroad. It includes anti-money laundering and sanctions provisions that enforce compliance before foreign issuers give stablecoins to American holders.
However, Senator Elizabeth Warren voiced her opposition to the bill, fearing that Trump could profit off of it.
“The Genius Act will accelerate Trump’s corruption by supercharging the size of the stablecoin market and the reach and profitability of Trump’s USD1,” said Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, on the Senate floor in May. “And, for the first time in American history, this bill will make our President, Donald Trump, the regulator of his own financial product.”
USA Today
Her concerns are well-founded given the other provisions of the bill, Trump’s history of crypto corruption, and the market results of the bill. Regarding the former, the bill directs the Treasury Secretary, appointed by the President, to establish the requirements for permitted stablecoin issuers. The Treasury Secretary and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Chair, among others, are also on the Stablecoin Certification Review Committee, which “certifies state regulatory regimes as substantially similar to the federal regulatory framework, approves nonfinancial companies as issuers and approves comparable foreign regulatory regimes for foreign issuer eligibility.” If Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent does not conform to Trump’s regulatory desires, he may hear the trademark, “you’re fired.”
As for the market results of the bill’s passage, they have already exceeded Trump’s wildest and most lustful dreams. On July 17, the price of bitcoin went up by 1.40%, etherium by 3.41%, and Coinbase shares by 3.2%. Citigroup, which bowed down to right-wing pressure without even receiving Trump’s direct ire, has stated on July 15 that it is considering the issuance of its own cryptocurrency. JPMorgan plans to use stablecoin. Walmart and Amazon are also giving consideration to issuing their own stablecoins.
This bill, alongside other measures such as appointing crypto-friendly financial regulators, shuttering the cryptocurrency crime unit, dropping Securities and Exchange Commission lawsuits against criminal crypto companies, and many more, ensure that Trump, his wife, Melania, and his sons will maximize their gains from cryptocurrency.
