Bank of England Governor Warns: Global Stablecoin Standards Need to Factor in a Tug-of-War with US Policy

According to a Reuters report on May 11, 2026, Andrew Bailey, Governor of the Bank of England and Chair of the Financial Stability Board (FSB), said at a meeting on Friday that international regulators will have to “fight” with the U.S. government over the development of global stablecoin standards, emphasizing that without international standards, stablecoins would not be able to be effectively integrated into the global payments architecture.

Bailey’s key warning: international standards, redemption risks, and the threat of bank runs

Citing Reuters, Bailey said: “If we want stablecoins to be part of the global payments architecture, then it’s only by setting international standards that they can work.” He added: “To be frank, I think this will be a fight with (the U.S.) government that’s coming next.”

Bailey also noted that some stablecoins cannot be easily redeemed for cash unless they are traded through crypto exchanges, which may limit their redeemability when market conditions are volatile. He said that if stablecoins are widely used for cross-border payments, hard-to-redeem dollar-denominated tokens could flow into other countries such as the UK in large quantities, and that the UK is currently planning to set strict stablecoin redemption laws. Bailey directly warned: “We know what happens if stablecoins run into a bank run; they all come here.”

As FSB Chair, Bailey said stablecoins pose a potential threat to financial stability.

U.S. stance: the GENIUS Act and the Trump policy framework

According to Reuters, U.S. President Trump aims to attract the cryptocurrency industry to the United States and promote stablecoin adoption through the GENIUS Act, which provides a regulatory framework for stablecoin issuers.

U.S. banking industry groups have raised similar concerns with Congress and are pushing legislation to ban third-party platforms such as crypto exchanges from paying stablecoin yield. The latest version of the bill released this month bans giving stablecoin incentives to idle balances, but allows crypto platforms to “offer other forms of customer incentives.” The U.S. Senate Banking Committee indefinitely postponed a vote on the bill in January this year and has scheduled deliberations for Thursday.

Current state of the stablecoin market

According to CoinGecko data as of May 11, 2026, the total market capitalization of the global stablecoin market is over $317 billion; the largest stablecoins are mostly dollar-denominated, supported by U.S. Treasuries and dollar-denominated assets.

Frequently asked questions

Why and when did Andrew Bailey make the above stablecoin statement?

According to a Reuters report on May 11, 2026, Andrew Bailey, Governor of the Bank of England and Chair of the FSB, made the above remarks at a meeting on Friday, saying that setting international stablecoin standards will be a “fight” with the U.S. government.

What is Bailey’s main warning about stablecoin convertibility?

Citing Reuters, Bailey said that if some stablecoins cannot be easily redeemed for cash without trading through crypto exchanges, their redeemability may be limited during market volatility; he also warned that if a bank run occurs, hard-to-redeem tokens could flow into countries such as the UK in large quantities.

What is the latest progress on the U.S. GENIUS Act?

According to reports, the latest version of the GENIUS Act bans incentives for idle stablecoin balances but allows crypto platforms to provide other forms of customer incentives; the U.S. Senate Banking Committee indefinitely postponed a vote on the bill in January this year and has scheduled deliberations for Thursday.