GOP Blinks First in Crypto Standoff: Thune Hints at Stablecoin Compromise Ahead of Senate Showdown
Washington’s favorite spectator sport—regulatory gridlock—gets a surprise twist as Senate Republicans signal flexibility on stablecoin legislation. Thune’s olive branch cuts through the usual partisan posturing, just days before a critical vote.
Behind closed doors, lobbyists for both TradFi and DeFi are already high-fiving—nothing unites rivals like the smell of half-baked compromise. The bill’s fate now hinges on whether lawmakers can outmaneuver their own hypocrisy: regulating the very asset class they’ve spent years vilifying.
Bonus jab: If history repeats, expect a last-minute poison pill that somehow still benefits Wall Street’s blockchain posers.
What’s at stake?
The GENIUS Act allows nonbank stablecoin issuers to operate in the U.S. economy, providing key protections for consumers using the technology for daily needs.
A stablecoin is a digital currency designed to maintain a consistent value by pegging it to a fixed asset like the U.S. dollar. Stablecoins, unlike Bitcoin, offer predictability for daily transactions by backing their value with cash or other stable assets.
With it, banks and non-bank institutions could issue stablecoins if they hold 1:1 reserves in high-quality liquid assets. House lawmakers, meanwhile, have proposed more restrictive reserve requirements in their competing STABLE Act.
If signed into law, the bill would address a regulatory gap that has persisted for years as stablecoins grew to over $240 billion in market capitalization, data from CoinGecko shows.
Edited by Sebastian Sinclair
