S.Amdt. 2241

This amendment makes a series of specific text changes to the bill S. 1582, which relates to the regulation of payment stablecoins. Its purpose is to alter and add provisions governing who can issue payment stablecoins, how transactions and consumer data are handled, how the Treasury Department operates, and what protections exist for customers if an issuer becomes insolvent.

The amendment explicitly changes or adds the following to the bill:

• Issuer Qualifications: It clarifies which entities may act as permitted payment stablecoin issuers, specifically listing subsidiaries of insured depository institutions approved under section 5, Federal qualified payment stablecoin issuers, and State qualified payment stablecoin issuers.

• Public Company Restrictions: It prevents public companies that are not predominantly engaged in financial activities from issuing payment stablecoins unless they receive a unanimous vote from the Stablecoin Certification Review Committee, meet strict data use and advertising limitations, and comply with consumer privacy protections. It applies similar restrictions to non-U.S. domiciled companies.

• Interest Prohibitions: It explicitly bans payment stablecoin issuers and foreign payment stablecoin issuers from paying holders any form of interest or yield solely for holding, using, or retaining the stablecoin.

• Treasury Authority and Safe Harbors: It allows the Secretary of the Treasury to provide limited safe harbors during unusual and exigent circumstances, provided the Secretary submits a justification to congressional committees. It also maintains the Treasury's existing authority to block or limit U.S.-regulated stablecoin transactions and requires the publication of certain determinations and bilateral agreements in the Federal Register.

• Exempt Transactions: It exempts certain transactions from specific requirements, such as direct transfers between two individuals acting without an intermediary, transfers between an individual's U.S. and foreign accounts offered by the same parent company, and transactions made using software or hardware wallets for personal custody.

• Customer Property and Insolvency: It requires issuers to treat customer stablecoins, private keys, cash, and other property as belonging to the customer rather than the company, and to protect them from creditor claims. It also establishes that in insolvency proceedings, stablecoin holders' claims have priority over other creditors with respect to required stablecoin reserves, and mandates a study on potential insolvencies by primary Federal payment stablecoin regulators.