Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong says the US economy would benefit if Congress adopts stablecoin legislation that allows users to earn on-chain interest.
In a new post on the social media platform X, Armstrong says dollar-backed stablecoins are growing in popularity and could yield increased benefits for users as well as the US with changes to the law.
As US lawmakers debate stablecoin legislation, Armstrong says the government should legalize on-chain interest for users.
“Stablecoins have already found product market fit by digitizing the dollar and other fiat currencies, but we haven’t unlocked a critical piece of the puzzle for the average person, and the US economy, to reap the full benefits: on-chain interest…
‘On-chain interest’ is the ability of a stablecoin to function as a form of payment and directly deliver interest earned on reserve assets to the stablecoin holder, effectively an interest-bearing checking account.”
Armstrong says on-chain interest could bring several benefits to the US economy by giving more spending power to users and bolstering stablecoin issuers who buy US Treasury bills to maintain a 1:1 peg to the dollar.
“The US economy wins. Stablecoins are already one of the largest holders of US treasuries – holding more than most countries – and could easily be the largest treasury holder in a few years. They are rapidly onboarding global users to USD, pulling dollars back to US treasuries and extending dollar dominance in an increasingly digital global economy. More yield in consumers’ hands means more spending, saving, investing – fueling economic growth in all local economies where stablecoins are held. If we don’t unlock on-chain interest, the US misses out on billions more USD users and trillions in potential cash flows.”
Armstrong says the technology exists for on-chain interest-paying stablecoins, but existing laws make it prohibitive.
“So why aren’t we doing this today? The tech is all there, but the law hasn’t caught up. Unlike interest-bearing checking and savings accounts, stablecoins do not currently benefit from the same exemptions under the securities laws that allow issuers to pay interest to users. Stablecoins should be able to pay interest just like an ordinary savings account, without the onerous disclosure requirements and tax implications imposed by securities laws.”
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