On September 24, the US Federal Reserve opened public comment on two proposals that set the rules for payment stablecoin issuers under its supervision. The regulator announced this in a press release. The proposals cover reserves and capital — in plain terms, what backs "digital dollars" and how much of a safety cushion their issuers must hold.
What the regulator is proposing
Both documents are part of the framework Congress set out in the GENIUS Act. The Fed is inviting the market to weigh in: the proposals go through public comment before becoming binding rules. In effect, the regulator is defining how issuers will prove that every token issued is actually backed, and how much capital they must keep for a rainy day.
Why ordinary users should care
Stablecoins like USDT and USDC have long been a working tool for paying for overseas services and sending transfers. But most people hold them not in some ideal token from a whitepaper — they hold them on a specific network. And that's where the practical side begins.
TRC-20: cheap and fast
On the Tron network, a USDT transfer costs pennies and settles in seconds. That's why TRC-20 is the most popular route for small and mid-sized payments: topping up a card, moving funds between your own wallets, or paying for a subscription through a crypto gateway.
ERC-20: pricier but more compatible
Ethereum offers maximum compatibility with exchanges, DeFi protocols and wallets, but fees can eat a noticeable chunk of the amount, especially when the network is busy. For large sums and operations inside the Ethereum ecosystem it makes sense; for micropayments it often doesn't.
- Speed: TRC-20 — seconds; ERC-20 — from tens of seconds to minutes depending on load.
- Fees: TRC-20 — fixed and low; ERC-20 — variable and potentially high.
- Compatibility: ERC-20 is accepted almost everywhere; TRC-20 is supported by most exchanges and payment gateways.
- Golden rule: the sending and receiving networks must match — otherwise funds can be lost.
What comes next
For now these are just proposals: public comment and possible revisions lie ahead before they take effect. But the direction is clear — the US is moving stablecoins out of the gray zone and into regulation. Over time, that should mean more predictable issuers and fewer surprises around backing. As for which network to use for a transfer, that's still your call: TRC-20 when cost and speed matter most, ERC-20 when compatibility does.
This material is for informational purposes only and is not financial advice. Cryptocurrencies and stablecoins carry market and regulatory risks.
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