The Senate's passage of stablecoin legislation marks a leap forward for the potential mainstreaming of cryptocurrencies that track the U.S. dollar, but there are still problems to solve before banks and businesses can capitalize on the opportunities.

The legislation has been able to garner a level of bipartisan support that was not possible in previous Congresses because of a lack of support from Democratic lawmakers, but many of those benefited from crypto industry contributions in the 2024 election cycle. 

As the Senate stands poised to pass a landmark bill establishing rules for stablecoin issuers, a provision allowing state-chartered uninsured banks to operate in states without prior approval is drawing concern from observers and opposition from state regulators.

The retail giants are kicking the tires on their own currencies. The potential prize is a way to reimagine prepaid cards and gain a key position as new forms of artificial intelligence-powered payments take off.

Blockchain-based tokenized financial products are rapidly advancing into asset classes like private credit and commercial real estate. American banks must lead, before global competitors set the terms.

As the crypto-friendly GENIUS Act winds its way through Congress, executives at some of the nation's largest banks are showing a newfound enthusiasm for stablecoins.

The card, powered by fintech Cardless' embedded credit card platform, provides up to 4% cash back in bitcoin, and allows customers to service their account directly in the cryptocurrency exchange's app, similar to the way Apple Card works in Apple Wallet.