U.S. Treasury to Propose Rules Requiring Stablecoin Issuers to Bear AML and Sanctions Compliance Obligations

Odaily News The U.S. Treasury Department is set to release proposed rules requiring stablecoin issuers to establish standards for combating money laundering and sanctions violations. According to a summary of the proposal obtained by CoinDesk, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) under the Treasury Department will jointly formulate rules clarifying how issuers should comply with the GENIUS Act passed last year. This includes establishing control measures to block, freeze, and reject suspicious transactions.

FinCEN will require issuers' anti-money laundering programs to be capable of suspending flagged transactions and allocating more resources to high-risk customers and activities. When U.S. authorities pursue specific targets, regulated issuers must examine their own records for activities related to the flagged individuals or entities. OFAC, on the other hand, requires issuers to implement risk-based sanctions compliance safeguards in both primary and secondary markets to identify and reject transactions that may violate U.S. sanctions regulations.

The proposal emphasizes respect for the industry, stating that financial institutions best understand their own money laundering and terrorist financing risks. Companies maintaining appropriate anti-money laundering measures typically will not face enforcement actions. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that these measures will protect the U.S. financial system from national security threats while not hindering the development of U.S. businesses within the stablecoin ecosystem. The proposal will enter a public comment period and may be revised before finalization.