Weekly brief · No. 4
Washington stalls, Circle launches its own rail, and the Australian dollar is on it from day one
The CLARITY Act fails in the Senate, Arc goes live with USDC as gas, and the UK, EU and Hong Kong draw their perimeters.
21 September 2026Covering 14–20 September 20266 min readForte Tech Solutions
The week in brief
- 01
Washington stalls
The CLARITY Act failed Senate cloture 49 to 50 on 15 September, with four Republicans crossing over community-bank fears about stablecoin rewards. The SEC pledged to act under existing authority and the CFTC filed a crypto market proposal with OMB on 17 September.
- 02
Circle builds its own rail
Arc mainnet went live on 16 September with USDC as gas, a StableFX engine and validators including BlackRock, DTCC, ICE, Mastercard, Visa and Standard Chartered. Column launched 24/7 USDC and USDT conversion with no prefunding.
- 03
Regulators set the perimeter
The FCA published PS26/18 ahead of its 30 September gateway, the WSJ reported ECB President Lagarde intervened to stall Binance’s MiCA licence, and Hong Kong targets a wholesale CBDC by year-end.
- 04
Australia: AUD on Arc, AUSTRAC removes 45
AUDD launched on Arc on day one, OSL added AUD stablecoin-to-fiat conversion via Banking Circle, and AUSTRAC removed 45 registrations. ASIC’s no-action position ends in nine days.
Global industry and markets
4 itemsGlobal16 Sep
Circle launches Arc, a payments-grade Layer 1 with USDC as the gas token
Public but permissioned at launch, with sub-second settlement, optional privacy and a native StableFX engine. Validators include BlackRock, DTCC, Galaxy, ICE, Mastercard, MoneyGram, SBI, Standard Chartered, Sumitomo, Visa and Worldpay; BlackRock and Janus Henderson tokenised funds are live at launch.
Why it matters
The second-largest issuer now controls its own settlement layer, validators and FX. Chains that were neutral venues for USDC become competitors; institutions gain a permissioned option with familiar names running the nodes.
United States16 Sep
Column, an FDIC-member bank, launches 24/7 USDC and USDT conversion with no prefunding
Stablecoins and deposit accounts sit on the same ledger, so inbound coins convert to dollars instantly and outbound coins fund by ACH debit. Brex and Slash are named as users, with tens of billions in annualised volume.
Why it matters
Prefunding is the hidden cost of stablecoin payouts and card settlement. A chartered bank removing it at the ledger level is a template other sponsor banks will be asked to match.
Singapore / Global17 Sep
Partior integrates LSEG’s DiSH to settle interbank balances around the clock
DBS, Deutsche Bank, JP Morgan and Standard Chartered will pool bilateral balances in USD, EUR and SGD and settle among themselves 24/7 on LSEG’s Digital Settlement House. Go-live is targeted for Q1 2027.
Why it matters
Tokenised deposit networks settled instantly for clients but still left banks to square up on legacy rails. Closing that gap makes bank money a genuine always-on alternative to stablecoins.
Global14 Sep
WTO: stablecoins are 3% of international payments, and regulation is the constraint
The study counts 35-fold growth from 2020 to mid-2024 but finds only 11 of 28 surveyed jurisdictions have finalised stablecoin frameworks. It maps five trade-finance frictions stablecoins could address.
Why it matters
A trade body framing stablecoins as trade infrastructure shifts the policy conversation. Regulatory convergence and interoperability are named as the gating items.
Global regulation
4 itemsUnited States15 Sep
CLARITY Act fails Senate cloture 49 to 50
Republicans Hawley, Collins, Moran and Tillis voted no, Moran citing deposit flight from community banks if stablecoin rewards spread. Tillis’s motion allows a return vote, but the calendar makes it unlikely before the November election.
Why it matters
Stablecoins keep the GENIUS Act but lose the statutory clarity on trading, custody and rewards. The yield question moves to Treasury’s GENIUS rulemaking and bank lobbying.
United States17–18 Sep
CFTC files a crypto market rule with OMB; SEC pledges to act “with or without legislation”
The CFTC submitted its proposal on 17 September, two days after the vote. The SEC separately approved a five-year innovation exemption for tokenised stock trading. Rule text is not yet published.
Why it matters
Agency rulemaking is now the US path: faster but less durable rules, reviewable by the next administration and the courts.
United Kingdom16 Sep
FCA publishes PS26/18 perimeter guidance ahead of the 30 September gateway
It sets out how the five regulated activities apply, including issuing qualifying stablecoins. Existing MLR registrations do not convert; firms must apply between 30 September 2026 and 28 February 2027. The regime takes effect 25 October 2027.
Why it matters
The UK window opens in nine days with a hard five-month deadline. Firms serving UK clients need a perimeter decision now.
European Union18 Sep
WSJ: ECB President Lagarde intervened to stall Binance’s MiCA licence in Greece
A senior Greek regulator reportedly told Binance the decision should wait until ESMA takes over licensing, over concerns about dollar stablecoins in the euro area. Binance withdrew in June. The ECB declined to comment.
Why it matters
If accurate, MiCA licensing is being shaped by monetary-sovereignty concerns, not only rulebook criteria.
Australia and corridors
5 itemsAustralia16 Sep
AUDD, an AFSL-licensed Australian dollar stablecoin, goes live on Arc from day one
Issued by AUDC Pty Ltd under AFSL 700123, AUDD is backed by AUD reserves and has supported over A$2bn of cumulative volume since 2022. The launch targets on-chain FX, tokenised-asset settlement and global payments.
Why it matters
An AFSL-licensed AUD coin is now a settlement asset on a chain whose validators include BlackRock, DTCC and Visa, with a native FX engine alongside.
Australia7 Sep
AUSTRAC cancels, suspends or refuses 45 remittance and exchange registrations
Over the past year, for dormancy, insolvency, lack of operational capacity, failure to notify material changes and ML/TF risk. GetCoins was cancelled after alleged exploitation by investment scams.
Why it matters
Registration is being actively pruned. Counterparties relying on an AUSTRAC-registered partner should expect the register to shrink.
Hong Kong / Australia15 Sep
OSL adds AUD, GBP, HKD, SGD and USD stablecoin-to-fiat conversion through Banking Circle
Extends the existing euro arrangement to six currencies, so institutional clients receive, convert and settle 24/7 on one platform.
Why it matters
AUD off-ramps from a regulated Asian venue widen settlement options for Australia–Asia corridors.
Hong Kong16–17 Sep
Hong Kong targets a wholesale CBDC for interbank settlement by year-end
The HKMA plans a wholesale CBDC for 24/7 interbank and tokenised-deposit settlement under Project EnsembleTX. The SFC is directed to promote regulated stablecoin trading and use in tokenised money market funds.
Why it matters
Hong Kong is pairing licensed stablecoins with central bank money on the same rails: a reference model for the region.
ThailandSep
Thailand’s SEC proposes same-owner verification and daily caps for stablecoin transfers
Deposits and withdrawals at licensed operators would need to be to and from wallets of the same verified owner, with a daily limit of about US$150,000. Consultation closes 25 September.
Why it matters
Corridor operators serving Thailand will need wallet-ownership attestation, not just counterparty KYC.
Coming up
- 22 SepBank of England systemic stablecoin consultation closes
- 24 SepBinance halts USDP trading; withdrawals open to 24 November
- 25 SepThailand SEC consultation closes
- 28 Sep–1 OctSibos 2026
- 30 SepASIC no-action ends; FCA gateway opens; MiCA review closes
- 7–8 OctTOKEN2049 Singapore
- 16 OctMAS stablecoin legislation consultation closes
- 19–20 OctGENIUS NPRM and SEC Regulation Crypto Assets comments due
- 27–28 OctFOMC meeting
- 30 OctRBA consultation on RITS in a tokenised ecosystem closes
Watchlist
- DaysCFTC proposal text and any SEC rule on spot trading
- 1 OctASIC’s enforcement posture once the no-action position lapses
- WeeksArc early volumes, validator additions and AUD pairs on StableFX
- WeeksEU response to the Lagarde report
- H2 2026Formation of the 21-institution G-SIB stablecoin company
You might also be interested in
- The Fed raised rates 25bp to 3.75–4.00% on 16 September, lifting the yield on the Treasury bills behind most dollar stablecoins.
- The SEC granted a five-year innovation exemption for tokenised US stock trading on permissionless chains (17 Sep).
- The ECB invited online merchants to join a 12-month digital euro pilot starting H2 2027 (15 Sep).
- Singapore’s dtcpay extended its Series A to US$25m with SBI Group (18 Sep).
- Korea’s won stablecoin KRW1 became spendable at 175m+ Visa merchants via Rain (15 Sep).