By Joe Light
Some Republican lawmakers are making a renewed attempt to ban a U.S. central bank digital currency. Their success would be good news for companies that make money from stablecoins, such as Circle Internet Group and Coinbase Global.
The most recent push comes courtesy of the fight over the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. FISA includes a section, which expires on Thursday, that lets the government surveil foreign targets without a warrant. The surveillance sometimes sweeps up Americans who communicate with people overseas, and some lawmakers want to add a provision that would require a warrant when enforcement agencies search for Americans.
Lately, some GOP hardliners have also insisted that the FISA reauthorization include a permanent ban on the U.S. issuing -- or even studying -- a central bank digital currency.
Unlike speculative cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, CBDCs are issued by governments and meant to be a digital alternative to cash. Many countries have run CBDC pilots for their own currencies, and some regional Federal Reserve banks have studied what a CBDC could look like in the U.S.
The problem for Circle and Coinbase is that any U.S. CBDC would be a competitor to USDC, the stablecoin that the companies co-founded. Stablecoins are pegged to the dollar and their proponents hope that one day they'll be widely used in payments. They're typically backed by reserves, like U.S. Treasuries, which throw off income to their sponsors. Circle, which has a partnership with Coinbase, has issued more than $77 billion in USDC.
That means a CBDC ban could give the companies a boost if GOP lawmakers are able to get one passed. CBDC bans have been attached to legislation in the past but none have made it into law. A housing bill earlier this year included a CBDC ban that would expire after a few years. It foundered in part because some GOP lawmakers in the House of Representatives, who say a CBDC could be used to surveil Americans, want the ban to be permanent.
"I've offered anti-CBDC amendments more than a dozen times, but the surveillance state is always hungry for more power -- and unwilling to give up an inch," Rep. Michael Cloud (R., Texas) said in an X post on Monday.
Circle declined to comment. Coinbase did not respond to a request for comment.
It isn't clear whether the FISA push for a CBDC ban will be successful, but in the short term that's not likely to matter. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has said for years that the Fed wouldn't consider issuing such a currency without Congress' assent. Fed chair nominee Kevin Warsh said during his confirmation hearing that he believes that issuing a CBDC would be ill-advised and won't happen on his watch.
Ban or no ban, Circle and Coinbase's U.S. stablecoin dominance isn't likely to be challenged by a CBDC anytime soon.
Write to Joe Light at joe.light@barrons.com
This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 28, 2026 13:41 ET (17:41 GMT)
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