Stablecoin Issuers Keep Treasury Yield as GENIUS Act Bans Payouts

Yahoo Finance··US·Read original
4▲2 ▼1Impact / 5
Summary · why it matters

The GENIUS Act's Section 4(a)(11), enacted in July 2025, now explicitly bars permitted stablecoin issuers from paying holders any interest or yield tied to holding tokens, locking in a business model built on reserve income the issuers keep entirely. Tether, issuer of USDT, ranks as the 17th-largest holder of US Treasuries globally with approximately $141 billion in direct and indirect Treasury exposure as of Q1 2026, per its BDO Italia attestation, while Morgan Stanley projects stablecoin issuers could collectively hold $1.2 trillion in US Treasuries by 2030. Circle's FY2025 SEC 10-K showed $2.75 billion in total revenue, of which $2.64 billion, or 96%, came from reserve income, yet the company still posted a $70 million net loss as distribution costs reached $1.66 billion, including approximately $1.36 billion to Coinbase and a $152.1 million increase attributable to Binance. Tether, lacking a partner on Coinbase's scale, retains roughly 3.0 to 3.5 cents per dollar annually versus Circle's 0.8 to 1.0 cents, posting $13 billion in net profit in 2024 and $1.04 billion in Q1 2026 with excess reserves of $8.23 billion. In September 2026 Circle sold $100 million in equity to Binance, 1,237,011 Class A shares at $80.84 per share, a 5% discount, alongside a five-year agreement paying Binance a monthly incentive fee on USDC held through Circle's Modular Smart Contract Wallet infrastructure, as the January 18, 2027 enforcement cliff approaches with Tether holding roughly 60% market dominance and Circle at 24%.

Impact on assets 5

Digital Finance & Tokenization± Mixed · 2 stocks
Circle Internet Group, Inc.
CRCL
▼ NegativeCapitalRegulationrelevance

Circle posted a $70 million net loss in FY2025 despite $2.75 billion revenue as distribution costs hit $1.66 billion.

Coinbase Global Inc
COIN
▲ PositiveDemandrelevance

Circle pays Coinbase roughly $1.36 billion in distribution costs and Binance deal uses Coinbase-scale partner economics, showing Coinbase's distribution role for USDC.

Financials▲ · 1 stocks
Others▲ · 2 stocks
Tether
USDT-USD
▲ PositiveRegulationrelevance

GENIUS Act lets Tether keep all reserve yield, and its lack of a Coinbase-scale partner means it retains 3.0-3.5 cents per dollar versus Circle's 0.8-1.0 cents.

Theme Impact 3

Off-coverage companies 2

BinancePrivate▲ Positive
Demandrelevance

Binance receives a $152.1 million increase in distribution payments and a five-year USDC incentive-fee agreement plus $100 million in Circle equity.

TetherPrivate± Mixed
relevance

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