ICBA weighs in on stablecoin debate

ICBA told Congress that current stablecoin arrangements are not subject to comprehensive supervision and lack many critical consumer and anti-money laundering protections—a regulatory gap that allows risks to the financial system to multiply, provides opportunities for financial crimes, and creates an unequal playing field with highly regulated community banks.

Details: In a statement for the record for a House Financial Services Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology, and Artificial Intelligence hearing on the path forward, ICBA said community banks have a strong interest in ensuring stablecoins issued by nonbank entities do not harm investors, consumers, or the financial system.

More: ICBA said it will evaluate any stablecoin regulatory framework against four principles:

• The potential for regulatory arbitrage.

• Preserving the integrity of Federal Reserve Master Accounts.

• Risks posed by commercial and “Big Tech” private currencies.

• Community bank disintermediation.

Advocacy: ICBA recently encouraged the Trump administration to ensure regulatory clarity for banks and a level regulatory playing field between the banking and crypto sectors. ICBA will continue to engage with policymakers on digital assets issues as regulatory frameworks are discussed.