President Donald Trump signed the GENIUS Act into law, the country’s first major cryptocurrency legislation, after personally intervening to get it through the House of Representatives.
Trump joked that Congress named the legislation, which creates the first federal framework for dollar-pegged stablecoins, after him.
The measure, known as the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act, provides those digital currencies with full reserve backing while introducing monthly audits and anti-money laundering compliance so that private companies can issue their own coins and implement them into their payment systems.
“For years, you were mocked and dismissed and counted out,” Trump said Friday during a signing ceremony at the White House. “This signing is a massive validation of your hard work, and your pioneering spirit, and your ability to never give up.”
The president added, “I pledged that we would bring back American liberty and leadership and make the United States the Crypto capital of the world — and that’s exactly what we’ve done.”
At the same time, the GENIUS Act is not without its critics, particularly without provisions addressing Trump’s own stakes in cryptocurrency after the industry spent $250 million on last year’s election to help him win.
“It’s good for the dollar, and it’s good for the country,” Trump said. “And that’s why I backed you at an early stage. And I also did it for the votes because you did come out and vote.”
During his remarks, Trump reiterated his pledge not to create a central bank digital currency, a demand of the House Freedom Caucus, many of whom were holdouts on the GENIUS Act until shortly before the vote.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters this week that Trump was personally involved in whipping votes for the legislation after returning from Pittsburgh following Sen. Dave McCormick’s (R-PA) inaugural Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Event, where the president announced $92 billion in investments.
“After that, he came back to the Oval Office at 8 p.m., he went in there to whip votes to get the GENIUS Act signed into law,” she said. “Because of his efforts, that bill is now going to be signed and passed.”
Trump mentioned his involvement in the GENIUS Act after becoming similarly involved in the One Big Beautiful Act.
“I am so tired of making phone calls at 2, 3, 4 o’clock in the morning, getting calls from our great speaker, ‘Sir, we have 12 hard “nos.”’ I say, ‘Mike, it’s two o’clock in the morning,’” he said on Friday. “They just want a little love. Unfortunately, it’s always the same. Always the same 12 people.”
Of House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), Trump continued, “’If you keep up this pace for another week, you’ll go down as the greatest speaker in the House in history.’ So one more week. Who needs Tip O’Neill? He’s better looking than Tip O’Neill, too.”
Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Johnson’s predecessor, was spotted in the East Room for the bill signing.
The House passed the GENIUS Act on Thursday, sending it to Trump, and another broader cryptocurrency market structure bill, the CLARITY Act, sending it to the Senate.