US President Donald Trump criticized banks for blocking progress on the Senate’s crypto market structure bill amid a dispute over stablecoin yield payments. On Truth Social, he said the GENIUS Act is “being threatened and undermined by the Banks,” adding that the U.S. must “get Market Structure done, ASAP” and accusing banks of trying to undermine a “powerful Crypto Agenda” that could move to other countries if the CLARITY Act isn’t resolved.
The GENIUS Act, passed by Congress in July, creates a regulatory path for stablecoin issuers but bars them from directly offering yield to holders. Third-party platforms, like crypto exchanges, can still offer yields to users holding stablecoins — a practice banking groups call a legal loophole. Banks are pressing for the Senate’s market structure bill to include a blanket ban on stablecoin yield payments. The House passed its version, the CLARITY Act, in July.
Trump urged banks not to “undercut The Genius Act, or hold The Clarity Act hostage,” and said they should strike a deal with the crypto industry in the American people’s interest. Crypto executives and lobbyists have resisted a total yield ban; Coinbase withdrew support for the bill in January over the issue, and the Senate Banking Committee postponed a markup after that withdrawal. Banking groups warn that stablecoin yields could divert deposits from traditional banks and threaten financial stability.
Crypto and banking representatives have met at the White House three times this year trying to find language acceptable to both sides, but no agreement has been reached. Trump is pushing to secure passage of the bill as a policy achievement ahead of the midterms, where crypto-aligned political action committees have raised more than $200 million to support industry-friendly candidates.
Representative French Hill, a senior Republican and chair of the House Financial Services Committee, said the Senate should consider passing the House’s CLARITY Act if its own bill stalls. Hill noted the House language echoes the GENIUS Act on a bipartisan basis, defining stablecoins as a payment device on a blockchain rather than an investment device and stating they “would not pay interest, per se.” He recommended the Senate adopt the House language, which passed with strong bipartisan support.
Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism and produced this report in line with its Editorial Policy; readers are encouraged to verify information independently.
