Today in crypto, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent compared the GENIUS Act’s stablecoin regulations to Abraham Lincoln-era banking reforms, French authorities proposed holding crypto platforms liable for certain DeFi incidents and Elon Musk backed the idea of a Tesla-SpaceX merger that could create a $3.5 trillion technology giant.

Bessent compares GENIUS Act stablecoin rules to Lincoln-era banking reforms

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has compared the newly finalized stablecoin regulations under the GENIUS Act to President Abraham Lincoln’s banking reforms, as the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) prepares to enforce federal rules for stablecoin issuers in January 2027.

In a Wednesday post on X, Bessent described the legislation as a “watershed moment in American finance,” drawing parallels with the National Currency Act of 1863, which created a federal system for nationally chartered banks to issue currency.

Bessent argued that the GENIUS Act could play a similar role in modernizing US payments, strengthening private-sector innovation and reinforcing American leadership in digital assets.

The OCC’s finalized regulations establish requirements for stablecoin reserves, redemptions, risk management and issuer oversight. The framework applies to eligible banks, federally supervised nonbank issuers and certain foreign stablecoin providers.

Starting Jan. 18, 2027, payment stablecoin issuers will generally need appropriate regulatory authorization to operate legally in the United States, with penalties possible for noncompliance.

The regulatory milestone comes as dollar-backed stablecoins gain wider adoption in payments and cross-border transfers, despite slowing growth in their overall circulating supply.

France proposes liability for crypto exchanges offering DeFi access

France wants cryptocurrency platforms to face liability for certain decentralized finance (DeFi) incidents if they fail to vet protocols or ignore known security risks.

French authorities published proposals Wednesday to revise the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA). The joint response to a European Commission consultation came from France’s Treasury, the Financial Markets Authority (AMF), the central bank and the Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority (ACPR).

“CASPs [crypto-asset service providers] should be liable for certain incidents affecting clients where they actively facilitated access,” French authorities said.

MiCA excludes crypto services provided in a fully decentralized manner without intermediaries. France’s proposal would extend investor safeguards by imposing new duties on regulated platforms that connect customers to DeFi protocols.

The Commission is reviewing whether MiCA needs updating as crypto markets develop. Its consultation sought views on activities outside the law’s original scope, including DeFi. The responses will inform a report to EU lawmakers due by June 30, 2027, which could include proposals to amend the law.

Musk says SpaceX-Tesla merger a ‘good idea’ as AI revenue jumps ninefold

Elon Musk said he likes the idea of merging Tesla with SpaceX in a potential move that would create a roughly $3.5 trillion technology giant combining AI, space exploration and electric vehicle manufacturing.

“Do I think it would be a good idea? Yes,” Musk said of the potential merger during a SpaceX Q3 earnings call on Tuesday.

Musk said that both SpaceX and Tesla have formed special committees of independent directors to discuss the idea at the request of shareholders, though he isn’t able to take part in the discussions due to being a conflicted party.

A merger would bring Tesla into the same corporate group as Grok developer SpaceXAI (formerly xAI) and social media platform X, which SpaceX acquired in February. The talks also come as SpaceX’s AI business became its largest revenue segment in Q3, underscoring how central artificial intelligence has become to Musk’s expanding technology empire.

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