U.S. lawmakers in Washington, D.C., are finalizing GENIUS Act rules that could increase Coinbase stablecoin revenue up to sevenfold, a shift expected to influence COIN stock and the broader USDC payments market, Bloomberg Intelligence said in a Feb. 23, 2026, report.
In 2025, stablecoins accounted for about 19% of Coinbase’s total revenue. This was driven mainly by interest earned on USDC reserves shared with this stablecoin issue,r Circle.
Given USDC’s status as one of the largest dollar-backed stablecoins by market value, analysts see it as central to Coinbase’s strategy. They believe its role in payments and on-chain settlements could drive recurring revenue growth.
According to the Bloomberg report, the draft of the GENIUS Act provisions would bar stablecoin issuers from providing yields. The same limits could be extended to exchanges distributing reserve income to users.
Such an action would limit Coinbase’s ability to pass the interest earnings on USDC reserves to its users, and could create a different incentive model. However, banks support stricter regulations based on the argument that stablecoin rewards could be drawing deposits away from traditional lenders.
On the other hand, crypto firms argue that distributing reserve income can accelerate the adoption of stablecoin payments. This could improve on-chain dollar liquidity.
It would also provide support to institutional uses of blockchain for settlement purposes. According to Bloomberg, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong stated that White House meetings have indicated a “path forward” for the exchange.
He added that Coinbase will continue to lobby to maintain its high-margin stablecoin income. Analysts believe this income stream is more predictable than trading fee income, which is still tied to the volatility of the cryptocurrency market.
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Ironically, limiting stablecoin yield payout could increase Coinbase’s profitability. At present, Coinbase distributes a large portion of the income derived from Circle’s interest on the USDC reserve.
If Coinbase eliminates these incentives, it will retain a larger portion of the underlying interest revenue. Coinbase reported a 20% decline in revenue to $1.8 billion in Q4 2025 due to weaker crypto trading activity and lower crypto prices.
As a result of this decline in trading activity, the importance of stablecoins as a recurring income source has increased since they are less subject to market fluctuations.
According to data from TradingView on February 23, COIN stock was trading near $160.24, representing a decline of 6.48% on the day. Pre-market pricing showed COIN trading near $157.69, extending losses from the previous day’s session.
Over the past month, COIN has declined by approximately 28% and nearly 48% over the last six months. The regulatory outcome will determine the level of competition Coinbase faces against global frameworks such as Europe’s MiCA.
It will also shape how ongoing SEC oversight affects the U.S. crypto market structure. Each of these rules affects institutional adoption of stablecoins and Coinbase’s market share.
Source: TradingView
Regulatory policy regarding stablecoins may ultimately determine whether Coinbase develops into a payments-based platform or continues to rely on trading fees.
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