Payment regulators sharpen stablecoin and tokenisation rules

Global payments policy is moving toward tighter oversight of stablecoins, tokenised assets and DLT-based market infrastructure. The Bank of England published draft rules on June 22, 2026 for sterling-denominated systemic stablecoins, including a backing model that permits 70% of assets in short-term UK government debt and requires 30% in central bank deposits. The UK also plans broader reforms to bring payment services, electronic money, stablecoins and tokenised deposits into a single regulatory framework, while exploring how rules should apply to payments conducted by AI agents.

European authorities are focusing on reporting simplification, fund tokenisation and future market architecture. ESMA proposed replacing over 100 fund reporting obligations with a single EU template, while the European Central Bank set out a payments strategy covering retail, wholesale, business-to-business and cross-border payments. Dubai’s VARA introduced binding compliance expectations for token issuers, with relevant issuers required to evidence full compliance by September 30, 2026 and enforcement action beginning from October 1, 2026.

US regulators are building out stablecoin compliance under the GENIUS Act, including Bank Secrecy Act, sanctions and customer identification programme requirements for permitted payment stablecoin issuers. China’s Draft Financial Law would create a cross-sector financial regulatory statute and formally recognise the digital renminbi, while Singapore received a strong Financial Action Task Force assessment for its financial crime framework.