August 3, 2026
Travis Hill, Chairman
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
550 17th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20429
Attn: Jennifer M. Jones, Deputy Executive Secretary<
[Via: email to Comments@fdic.gov through FDIC Website at https://www.fdic.gov/federal-register-publications]
RE: Bank Secrecy Act and Sanctions Compliance Standards for FDIC-Supervised Permitted Payment Stablecoin Issuers Notice of Proposed Rulemaking [Comments- RIN 3064—AG29]
Dear Chairman Hill:
The National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) appreciates the opportunity to comment on the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) issued by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) regarding Bank Secrecy Act and compliance standards for FDIC-supervised permitted payment stablecoin issuers (FDIC BSA NPRM)[1] pursuant to the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act (GENIUS Act).
NCRC is a network of more than 700 community-based organizations dedicated to creating a nation that not only promises but delivers opportunities for all Americans to build wealth and attain a high quality of life. We work with community leaders and policymakers to advance solutions and build the will to solve America’s persistent racial and socio-economic wealth, income, and opportunity divides, and to make a Just Economy a national priority and a local reality.
The FDIC BSA NPRM addresses the GENIUS Act’s requirement for the FDIC to issue regulations implementing Bank Secrecy Act and sanctions compliance standards by incorporating the requirements of the Treasury AML and Sanctions Compliance proposed rule.[2] The proposed rule augments the FDIC’s GENIUS Act Implementation NPRM[3] to which NCRC previously commented.[4] The FDIC is the “primary Federal payment stablecoin regulator of PPSIs [permitted payment stablecoin issuers] that are subsidiaries of insured State nonmember banks and State savings associations that have been approved by the FDIC to issue payment stablecoins.”[5]
NCRC believes the NPRM takes important steps to further regulate stablecoin issuers, but it does not adequately address the risks of the secondary market. NCRC urges the FDIC to:
- Require stablecoin issuers to monitor the secondary market for anti-money laundering and counter financial terrorism regulatory risks, given the secondary market’s heightened illicit finance risk.
- Create a regulatory framework that holds the stablecoin issuers to the same standards as banks to avoid creating a dynamic that accelerates the flight of deposits and contributes to the reduction in the flow of capital to communities.
1. Require stablecoin issuers to monitor their secondary markets for anti-money laundering and counter financial terrorism risks
Instituting uniform anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism and sanctions compliance requirements for permitted payment stablecoin issuers (PPSIs or issuers) is a desired outcome. However, the Treasury AML/CFT requirements that the FDIC proposes adopting do not adequately address the risks of the secondary stablecoin market.
The Treasury AML/CFT NPRM draws a distinction between the primary and secondary stablecoin market. A PPSI’s primary market consists of the users or holders of its stablecoin with whom it has a direct relationship, such as through direct stablecoin purchase, while a PPSI’s secondary market consists of the users or holders who purchase its stablecoin through an intermediary, a digital asset exchange, self-hosted wallet, or through a peer-to-peer exchange.[6] That NPRM specifically limits PPSI’s monitoring responsibilities to the primary market and does not require PPSIs to file suspicious activity reports (SARs) on secondary market transactions,[7] despite FinCEN concluding that “the majority of illicit activity involving stablecoins occurs on the secondary market.”[8]
FinCEN’s conclusion is consistent with the recent Financial Action Task Force report that found “stablecoins are the most popular virtual asset used in illicit transactions.”[9] Its March report notes that peer to peer transactions via unhosted wallets are a key vulnerability and recommends imposing AML/CFT obligations on issuers, intermediaries and custodians to mitigate that risk.[10]
By adopting the Treasury AML/CFT NPRM’s requirements, the FDIC would inherit a regulatory regime that does not adequately address the risks of the secondary stablecoin market. Given the risks, the FDIC should require PPSIs to establish and maintain AML/CFT programs that monitor the PPSI’s secondary market risk and require them to file SARs when warranted. In addition, to the extent the secondary market players such as intermediaries or exchanges act as service providers for the PPSI, then the FDIC should require PPSIs to ensure that those third parties comply with the BSA.
2. Create a regulatory framework that avoids accelerating the flight of deposits and the reduction in the flow of capital to communities
In finalizing the framework for AML/CFT compliance by PPSIs, we urge the FDIC to hold the PPSIs it regulates (generally nonbank subsidiaries of FDIC banks) to the same standards to which it holds banks and other regulated financial institutions. Uniform and consistent requirements should be applied regardless of the entity type – all should be held to the same high standards. When the PPSIs operate under weaker standards and avoid safeguards required of other financial institutions, the result may be faster stablecoin adoption without equivalent protections for consumers or communities. As NCRC warned in its previous comment letter, this dynamic could accelerate a flight of deposits out of traditional banks and into stablecoin products, reducing the pool of funds available to support household, small-business and community lending. In turn, stablecoin issuers would benefit from these inflows without assuming comparable responsibilities to the public.
Conclusion
Given the illicit finance risks in the secondary stablecoin market, NCRC urges the FDIC to impose requirements on stablecoin issuers to monitor its secondary market’s anti-money laundering and counter financing terrorism risks. In addition, stablecoin issuers must be held to the same standards as banks to avoid creating a dynamic that accelerates the flight of deposits and contributes to the reduction of available credit for household, small-business, and community needs.
Thank you for the opportunity to offer our input on the FDIC BSA NPRM. If you have any questions, please contact me at jvantol@ncrc.org, or Tara Flynn, NCRC Policy Director, at tflynn@ncrc.org.
Sincerely,
Jesse Van Tol
NCRC President and CEO
[1] Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Bank Secrecy Act and Sanctions Compliance Standards for FDIC-Supervised Permitted Payment Stablecoin Issuers, 91 Fed. Reg. 34171 (proposed June 5, 2026) [hereinafter FDIC BSA NPRM].
[2] Department of Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control and Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, Permitted Payment Stablecoin Issuer Anti-Money Laundering/Countering the Financing of Terrorism Program and Sanctions Compliance Program Requirements, 91 Fed. Reg. 18582 (proposed Apr. 10, 2026) [hereinafter Treasury AML/CFT NPRM].[3] Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Requirements and Standards for FDIC-Supervised Permitted Payment Stablecoin Issuers and Insured Depository Institutions,” Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, 91 Fed. Reg. 18,534 (proposed Apr. 10, 2026) [hereinafter FDIC GENIUS Act NPRM].
[4] National Community Reinvestment Coalition, Comment Letter to Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Regarding GENIUS Act Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (June 9, 2026), htpps://ncrc.org/ncrc-urges-fdic-to address-risk-of-deposit-flight-in-genius-act-rulemaking. To the extent applicable, NCRC incorporates this comment herein.
[5] FDIC BSA NPRM, 91 Fed. Reg. 34171.
[6] Treasury AML/CFT NPRM, 91 Fed. Reg. 18582, 18585 (Apr. 10, 2026).
[7] Id. at 18592.
[8] Id. at 18601.
[9] Financial Action Task Force, Targeted Update on the FATF Standards on Virtual Assets and Virtual Asset Service Providers: Peer to Peer Transactions and Stablecoins (Mar. 2026), www.fatf-gafi.org.
[10] Id. at 5.
