U.S. Senate passes the GENIUS Act on June 17 in a 68–30 vote

On June 17, the U.S. Senate approved the GENIUS Act by a 68-30 vote, marking the first major cryptocurrency bill to pass the Senate. 

With backing from some Democrats, Republican Senator Bill Hagerty led the bill through the Senate on Tuesday. Before the vote, he thanked senators on both sides of the aisle for their support. Many expected it to pass because senators had voted to advance it by a wide margin just days earlier.

🚨NEW: The GENIUS Act has passed the Senate in a final vote of 68-30.

Now, onto the House.

— Eleanor Terrett (@EleanorTerrett) June 17, 2025

Senators reached the final tally after weeks of committee hearings, closed-door discussions, and procedural votes. An earlier effort stalled last month when Democrats refused to back a motion to move forward. Since President Trump took office in January, his administration has pushed Congress to create clear rules that let digital currencies grow under U.S. law.

Under the GENIUS Act, stablecoins must always be fully backed by U.S. dollars or assets that can be quickly turned into cash.

Any issuer valued at more than $50 billion would need to submit to an independent audit each year. The bill also lays out rules for coins issued by companies outside the United States, aiming to close gaps around offshore tokens.

Big Tech faces restrictions under the GENIUS Act

Large, publicly traded firms such as Meta and Amazon would be barred from issuing stablecoins unless they meet specific criteria for financial safety and consumer data protection.

The act also includes a bankruptcy provision that gives stablecoin holders “super-priority status in bankruptcy proceedings, giving them the legal right to recover their money first in the unlikely event of an insolvency and protects existing bank depositors from reserve claims from an issuer,” according to a Senate fact sheet.

Early in the process, lobbyists for traditional banks, including Bank of America, urged lawmakers to bar nonbank firms from creating stablecoins.

Many Democrats raised questions over how the bill treats foreign issuers and whether it sets strong enough anti–anti-money-laundering checks. They also worried about large corporations using stablecoins to expand their reach.

Debate grew sharper after World Liberty Financial, a firm tied to President Trump, announced plans for its own stablecoin, drawing criticism over possible conflicts of interest.

GENIUS Act heads to House for final decision

The Genius crypto bill now moves to the House. In April, the House Financial Services Committee approved its own stablecoin measure, the Stablecoin Transparency and Accountability for a Better Ledger Economy Act, but it has not yet reached the full chamber for a vote.

Lawmakers in the House could choose to consider the Senate’s GENIUS Act instead of moving ahead with their committee bill, which may speed up final action.

Some members have suggested merging stablecoin rules into a wider cryptocurrency market-structure bill, though that effort appears more complex.

President Trump has said he wants a stablecoin law on his desk by August. Last week, his senior advisors released a statement of administration policy declaring, “If [GENIUS] were presented to the President in its current form, his senior advisors would recommend that he sign it into law.”

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