OCC Stablecoin Licensing Regime Advances With OMB Information Collection Filings
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency progresses its stablecoin licensing framework by submitting paperwork to the OMB.
OCC Stablecoin Licensing Regime Advances With OMB Information Collection Filings
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency progresses its stablecoin licensing framework by submitting paperwork to the OMB.
OCC Advances Stablecoin Licensing Regime
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency moved its stablecoin licensing regime forward on October 23, 2026, by submitting information collection requests to the Office of Management and Budget. Two Federal Register notices, identified as FR Doc 2026-21704 and FR Doc 2026-21705, indicate that the agency has sent the collection to the OMB for review. The agency is seeking a new control number, designated as 1557-NEW, for its licensing applications and reporting requirements.
Filed on October 22 and published the following day, these notices represent the first dated acts in a paperwork sequence that previously lacked specific dates. Despite this administrative progress, the application window for prospective issuers remains closed. No control number has been assigned yet, no approval has been granted, and the OCC has not issued a press release announcing it is ready to accept filings.
Timeline and Review Process Under the OMB
The review process now has clear dates established on the record. According to forkast.news, the comment period for both notices is set to close on November 23, 2026, which fulfills the thirty-day window and minimum requirement mandated by the Paperwork Reduction Act before a decision can be made.
Following the comment period, the statute provides the OMB Director with sixty days from the later of receipt or publication to notify the OCC of approval or denial. Measured from October 23, this timeline runs until December 22, 2026. If no notice arrives within this timeframe, the provision allows approval to be inferred, requires a control number without further delay, and permits the collection to run for up to a year.
Adjusted Burden Estimates and Future Deadlines
The revised reporting notice updates the assumed number of permitted payment stablecoin issuers from thirty to forty. It also estimates the combined annual burden of weekly Form PS-01 and quarterly Form PS-02 at 10,458 hours, an increase from 6,308 hours in June. Additionally, the application collection is modeled on forty respondents and 4,915 hours of burden.
Once the OCC begins accepting applications, the published sequence outlines clear operational timelines. This includes a notice within thirty days regarding whether an application is substantially complete, an answer to supplemental material within thirty days, a return no later than sixty days after the first notice, and a final decision within 120 days of a substantially complete determination. Compliance with criminal penalties attached kicks in on January 18, 2027, with the first weekly report due January 27, 2027, and the first quarterly report by April 30, 2027.
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