Federal Reserve Board requests comment on proposal to require certain payment stablecoin issuers to maintain an effective customer identification program

The Federal Reserve Board requested public comment on a proposal that would require certain payment stablecoin issuers to implement customer identification programs comparable to those mandated for banks and credit unions, the central bank announced Thursday [1]. The proposal, issued jointly with four other agencies, aims to extend anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing safeguards to a rapidly growing segment of the digital asset market [1]. Comments are due 60 days after the proposal is published in the Federal Register [1]. Stablecoins are a type of cryptocurrency designed to maintain a stable value relative to a reference asset, often a fiat currency like the U.S. dollar [2]. Unlike more volatile digital assets, they are frequently used as a bridge between traditional finance and crypto markets, or as a payment mechanism [2]. The regulatory push comes as digital assets, while not considered currencies in the traditional sense, have seen varying legal treatments across jurisdictions, including classification as commodities, securities, or currencies [2]. The proposed rule would require covered stablecoin issuers to establish risk-based procedures for verifying the identity of their customers, mirroring long-standing requirements under the Bank Secrecy Act for depository institutions [1]. The Federal Reserve’s action is part of a broader interagency effort to create a federal regulatory floor for a payment technology that has largely operated under a patchwork of state-level money transmitter rules [1]. The global payments landscape that stablecoins seek to enter is dominated by established networks. In 2025, Visa’s global network alone processed 257.5 billion transactions worth US$14.2 trillion [3]. The Federal Reserve, through the Federal Open Market Committee chaired by Jerome Powell, has a mandate to promote the stability of the U.S. financial system, a role that has historically involved responding to market disruptions ranging from currency bailouts to technological failures [4][5].