STABLE Act Passes US House Committee, Setting the Stage for Stablecoin Regulation

The U.S. House Financial Services Committee, on Wednesday, voted to move forward with the Stablecoin Transparency and Accountability for a Better Ledger Economy (STABLE) Act

The U.S. House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday, voted to advance the Stablecoin Transparency and Accountability for a Better Ledger Economy (STABLE) Act, aiming to regulate stablecoins, a key step towards U.S. regulation of the fast-growing digital asset market.

This bill, a Republican-backed stablecoin framework bill is now slated for a full vote on the House floor.

The clearance follows an intense debate regarding how to approach the fast-growing stablecoin space, which has drawn the interest of lawmakers, banks, and the crypto ecosystem. While supporters are optimistic that the legislation offers much-needed regulatory clarity, others caution it might stifle innovation or prove too lax to enforce sufficient consumer protections.

According to Bloomberg, the bill, called Stablecoin Transparency and Accountability for a Better Ledger Economy Act was passed with 32 members in favor and 17 in opposition. The act aims at setting rules and creating laws for stablecoins tied to the U.S. dollar, including requirements for reserves and measures to prevent money laundering. According to The Block, the bill also attempts to establish consumer protections and well-defined federal standards for the licensing of stablecoin issuers.

The bill will impose strict legal requirements on stablecoin issuers and require them to maintain all their assets fully reserved, undergo regular audits, and comply with specific licensing conditions. It is focusing its attempts to contain risks on the $150 billion stablecoin market, which is a key part of the broader cryptocurrency system.

Members of the crypto industry and the bill’s Republican backers were glad to see some Democrats join them in voting to move the STABLE Act out of the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday. But Democrats on the committee had expressed concerns about Trump’s ties to both the crypto industry and stablecoins.

French Hill, who chairs the House Financial Services Committee, had mentioned earlier this week that the recent news reports about the Trump family’s involvement in a new stablecoin have complicated the legislative efforts.

In another instance, Committee Ranking Member Maxine Walters said, “If there is no effort to stop the President of the United States from being involved in owning a stablecoin business, just as he owns crypto, which is his largest asset now, I will never be able to agree on supporting this bill and I would ask other members not be enablers, allowing the President of the United States to get away with this.”

Lawmakers backing the proposal add that a strong regulatory structure will improve financial stability and provide a clear path for responsible innovation. But there’s still disagreement over whether state or federal regulators should oversee stablecoin issuers. In a bid to segregate stablecoins from commerce or business many Democrats proposed several amendments to the bill. Congressman Lynch moved an amendment to restrict the activities of stablecoin issuers, as he was worried that they might expose taxpayers to bailouts. Representative Brad Sherman also moved a different amendment to prevent such bailouts entirely. However, most of the amendments moved by Democrats were defeated.

While the bill has now progressed, its ultimate fate as a law is still uncertain. It will now go to the House floor, where lawmakers will continue debating the bill and may make amendments. If it passes there, the Senate will consider it. But regulatory issues and some Democratic lawmakers’ opposition may still present obstacles for final approval, reports Ledger Insights.

The ultimate destiny of this bill may have wide-ranging implications for stablecoin issuers, the broader cryptocurrency market, and the future of regulation of digital finance in the U.S.