Rewriting the Future of U.S. Digital Finance Through Law

The ‘Wild West’ is over. A new financial order is being established.

• Why the U.S. pursues a dual strategy of ‘promoting’ stablecoins while ‘prohibiting’ CBDCs
• Key points of the four core bills (GENIUS Act, CBDC Anti-Surveillance Act, RFIA/FIT21)
• How new regulations will determine winners and losers in the global financial market

A New Blueprint for U.S. Digital Finance

Do you remember the ‘crypto winter’? The Terra/Luna collapse and FTX bankruptcy were not mere market failures. These events sent a clear signal to Washington that industry self-regulation and after-the-fact penalties alone were insufficient, becoming the decisive catalyst for the U.S. Digital Asset Laws.

Amid the chaos, the U.S. formulated a clear two-pronged strategy: to strictly regulate yet ‘promote’ privately-led stablecoins, while firmly ‘prohibiting’ government-controlled CBDCs. This approach aims to stabilize the domestic market and strategically defend U.S. financial supremacy against China’s digital yuan (e-CNY).

Chapter 1: The Birth of the ‘Official’ Digital Dollar: GENIUS Act

Once dubbed ‘casino chips of the crypto world,’ stablecoins were ticking time bombs. Terra/Luna, relying solely on algorithms without collateral, collapsed like a mirage, while Tether (USDT) fueled fears of ‘depegging’ due to opaque reserves.

The GENIUS Act emerged to address these issues, establishing the first federal regulatory framework to tame the wild stablecoin market.

A Club for ‘Permitted Issuers’ Only

The era of anyone issuing stablecoins is over. Now, only a qualified few can become ‘Permitted Issuers’:

• Bank subsidiaries: such as JP Morgan, Citigroup
• Federally chartered entities: fintech firms approved by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)
• State-chartered entities: institutions approved by state regulators meeting federal standards, like Paxos under New York DFS

1:1 Reserve Requirement and Enhanced Transparency

All stablecoins must be backed 100% by high-quality liquid assets (cash, short-term U.S. Treasuries) equal to their circulation. Rehypothecation—using customer assets as collateral elsewhere—is explicitly banned. Issuers must publish monthly audited reserve reports on their websites, setting a transparency standard far beyond past practices like Tether.

Creation of a New Asset Class and Ban on Interest Payments

The GENIUS Act’s major achievement is defining stablecoins as a new asset class, neither securities nor commodities. This ends the long-standing jurisdictional tug-of-war between the SEC and CFTC, placing oversight under banking regulators.

However, paying interest to holders is prohibited. This measure prevents stablecoins from directly competing with bank deposits and disrupting the financial system, clearly defining their role as a payment medium rather than an investment.

Chapter 2: Rejecting ‘Big Brother Money’: CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act

Another pillar of U.S. digital currency strategy is the firm rejection of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). The CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act codifies this stance into law.

The primary concern is the threat to financial privacy demonstrated by China’s digital yuan (e-CNY). A ‘Big Brother currency’ that allows government surveillance and control over all transactions could undermine American values of freedom and privacy.

The U.S. has chosen a clear path between regulated private innovation (stablecoins) and state control (CBDCs).

This law prohibits the Federal Reserve from issuing, researching, or testing a CBDC without explicit Congressional approval. It perfectly complements the stablecoin promotion law by legally removing the public option of CBDCs (‘prohibit’) and clearing the way for regulated private stablecoins to fill the gap (‘promote’).

Chapter 3: Ending the Regulatory War: RFIA & FIT21

The Lummis-Gillibrand Responsible Financial Innovation Act (RFIA) and its House counterpart, the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act (FIT21), offer comprehensive regulation covering the entire digital asset ecosystem beyond stablecoins.

Their core goal is to end the age-old debate: ‘Are cryptocurrencies securities or commodities?’ Introducing the new standard of ‘decentralization,’ they assign roles as follows:

• General rule: All digital assets are considered commodities regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
• Exception: Only assets insufficiently decentralized are classified as securities under the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

This shifts leadership of the digital asset spot market to the CFTC, providing a strong check on the SEC, which has historically constrained the market.

Comparison / Alternatives

Two key opposing frameworks clarify the U.S. strategy.

Legislative Competition in the U.S.: STABLE Act vs. GENIUS Act

Global Model Competition: U.S. vs. China

Conclusion

The U.S. new digital asset legal framework is a grand national strategy unifying fragmented regulations. Initially, I viewed these bills as isolated rules, but deeper analysis reveals a sophisticated strategic design.

• Key Summary:

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  1. Dual Strategy: The U.S. promotes private stablecoins while banning state-issued CBDCs, establishing a ‘regulated private innovation’ model.
  2. Dollar Hegemony Reinforcement: By mandating stablecoin reserves in U.S. Treasuries, private sector growth directly boosts Treasury demand—a brilliant financial strategy.
  3. New Order: The future digital asset market will center on ‘regulated decentralization,’ likely reshaping into two digital currency blocs led by the U.S. and China.

These changes are not just technological but signify a shift in global financial power. What opportunities do you see in this new order?