Four federal financial agencies have published amendments to the GENIUS Act that would require enhanced customer identification by stablecoin issuers. The proposal targets direct issuer-to-customer relationships and sets specific data collection obligations.

Proposed identification requirements

The regulators—Federal Reserve, OCC, FDIC and NCUA—seek mandatory KYC procedures for issuers licensed in the United States. The draft rules prescribe distinct information for individuals and legal entities, and require checks against sanctions and terrorism watchlists.

• For individuals: collect full name, date of birth and residential address.
• For legal entities: collect registration details, company address and tax identifiers or identity document information.

Issuers would be obliged to retain the collected records and to account for verification results previously completed by banks, according to the proposed text.

Scope and exclusions

The identification rules would apply only when an issuer interacts directly with a client, excluding secondary market transactions and operations executed through smart contracts. The proposal covers issuers licensed in the United States and would therefore affect entities such as Circle with its USDC.

Entities without a US licence, including Tether and its USDT, would not fall under these new KYC requirements as drafted.

OCC reporting and transparency proposals

The OCC separately recommends enhanced public reporting by stablecoin issuers, including weekly disclosures of the composition and fair value of reserve assets, and quarterly breakdowns of key metrics. The quarterly reports would list the largest wallet holders, trading volumes, counterparties, and information about coin issuance and redemptions.

The draft amendments are out for review and could change following public and industry feedback before any final rulemaking proceeds.