Basel Committee Revisits Crypto Banking Rules Amid Stablecoin Growth

The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) is reconsidering its cryptocurrency banking rules, as confirmed by Chair Erik Thedéen to the Financial Times. Bloomberg had reported last month that industry associations have repeatedly requested a review, particularly because the current rules treat stablecoins as equivalent to highly volatile cryptocurrencies, despite their relative price stability.

“The rules on banks holding large amounts of capital to cover losses in cryptocurrency need a rework,” Thedéen told the Financial Times.

The proposed framework, initially drafted in 2021, was set to take effect at the start of next year. However, the rapid growth of stablecoins in 2025 has prompted calls for a rethink. The Basel Committee, which sets global banking prudential standards under the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), now faces pressure to differentiate between highly volatile tokens like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) and more stable digital assets.

A new approach is needed because the U.S. and U.K. have refused to implement the rules, which currently extend to stablecoins even though they don’t experience the same price swings as other cryptocurrencies, Thedéen said.

“The focus back then was very much on the bitcoins of this world,” he explained. “Now of course everyone is talking about stablecoins. Permissionless ledgers: are these as risky as we thought? Or is there an argument we can look at this in a different way? We need to start analyzing. But we need to be fairly quick on it.”

U.S. Federal Reserve Vice-Chair of Supervision Michelle Bowman also weighed in last month, calling the rules “not very realistic.” The Bank of England has similarly decided not to implement them in their current form, according to the Financial Times.

The review highlights a growing global debate on how traditional banking regulations should adapt to stablecoins and digital assets, balancing prudential oversight with the reality of the rapidly evolving crypto ecosystem.