XRP News Today: XRP Hits $3.66 All-Time High as Trump Prepares to Sign GENIUS Act

XRP, the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, achieved a new all-time high of $3.66, surpassing its previous peak from 2018. This significant milestone came as President Trump prepared to sign the GENIUS Act, a crucial piece of legislation aimed at regulating stablecoins in the United States. The GENIUS Act, which stands for “Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins Act,” is set to become law following Trump's signature, expected to take place during a signing ceremony in Washington, DC.

The GENIUS Act will come into effect 18 months after Trump signs it, or 120 days after the primary federal payment stablecoin regulators, including the Treasury and Federal Reserve, issue final regulations implementing the act. The legislation creates a framework for how stablecoin issuers must be regulated to serve the US market. One of the key provisions of the act is that stablecoin issuers will be required to back their tokens 1:1 with reserves of US dollars or other monetary products such as Treasury bills. These issuers will also be required to publish the composition of those reserves publicly and have them examined by a registered public accounting firm.

The act also includes a contentious section that bans stablecoin issuers from giving holders and users interest or yield on their stablecoins. This provision is expected to impact the marketing strategies of stablecoin issuers, who often use yield offerings to attract users. Additionally, the act creates an incentive for stablecoin issuers to seek a banking license, as a new stablecoin license under the GENIUS Act limits a company’s activities to “purely stablecoin issuance.” Most stablecoin issuers engage in activities outside the scope of that license, which means they would still need state-level money transmission licenses to operate nationally.

The GENIUS Act also introduces uncertainty into the decentralized finance (DeFi) space, as it is unclear how platforms are to handle stablecoins under the new regulations. Logan Payne, a crypto-focused lawyer, noted that additional legislation and regulation will be needed to address DeFi over the next few years. The act also allows multiple types of regulated entities, such as banks, credit unions, and nonbanks, to issue stablecoins and creates a dual federal and state legal framework to police them.

The passage of the GENIUS Act is expected to have a significant impact on the cryptocurrency market, particularly for XRP, which has seen a surge in momentum following the legislative developments. The act's provisions for stablecoin regulation and the potential opening of the US retirement market to cryptocurrencies are likely to drive further interest and investment in the sector. As the regulations come into effect, stablecoin issuers and DeFi platforms will need to adapt to the new legal framework, which could lead to changes in how stablecoins are issued and used.