Tax Stablecoins Like Banknotes

Updated: 2026.01.12 16D ago 3 sources
Historically, Congress used its exclusive coinage power to restrain private currencies by taxing state‑bank notes, a practice upheld by the Supreme Court. The GENIUS Act creates payment stablecoins that can be treated as cash equivalents yet exempts them from taxation and even regulatory fees. This marks a sharp break from tradition that shifts seigniorage and supervision costs away from issuers. — It reframes stablecoins as a constitutional coinage and fiscal policy issue, not just a tech regulation question, with consequences for monetary sovereignty and funding of oversight.

Sources

Venezuela stablecoin fact of the day
Tyler Cowen 2026.01.12 85% relevant
The article’s claim (Asdrúbal Oliveros: ~80% of Venezuela’s oil revenue collected in stablecoins such as Tether) is an instantiation of why stablecoins matter as de‑facto money and public‑finance objects; it strengthens the case in the existing idea that stablecoins function like cash and therefore invite fiscal, regulatory, and taxation remedies (and create seigniorage and sovereignty questions).
China's Central Bank Flags Money Laundering and Fraud Concerns With Stablecoins
msmash 2025.12.01 80% relevant
The PBOC statement treats stablecoins as outside legitimate money and emphasizes state control — the same governance domain (sovereign currency and seigniorage) that the 'Tax Stablecoins Like Banknotes' idea addresses; China’s posture is a concrete instance of states asserting monetary prerogatives over private digital money.
The Great Stablecoin Heist of 2025?
Paul H. Kupiec 2025.10.13 100% relevant
The article cites GENIUS Act provisions that allow cash‑equivalent treatment, mandate dollar‑for‑dollar reserves that earn interest for issuers, and omit any taxes or agency fee authority.
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