How can a business issue a stablecoin? First choose an issuing jurisdiction and obtain a local issuance licence, then establish fully backed reserves, redemption and disclosure mechanisms as regulators require, and finally build the technical components for minting, burning and freezing. The US GENIUS Act, the EU’s MiCA, Hong Kong’s Stablecoins Ordinance and Singapore’s stablecoin framework all allow only authorized entities to issue regulated stablecoins in their jurisdictions.
What Licences Are Needed to Issue a Stablecoin?
In the US, the GENIUS Act provides that only a “permitted payment stablecoin issuer” may issue payment stablecoins. This includes approved subsidiaries of insured depository institutions, federal qualified issuers and state qualified issuers; state qualified issuers with no more than US$10 billion in outstanding issuance may opt for state-level supervision. According to an announcement by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Act takes effect on 18 January 2027.
In the EU, MiCA requires issuers of e-money tokens (EMTs) to be credit institutions or electronic money institutions, and to submit a crypto-asset white paper to the competent authority and publish it; issuing asset-referenced tokens (ARTs) requires separate authorization. MiCA explains the difference between these two token types. In Hong Kong, issuing a fiat-referenced stablecoin requires a licence from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and paid-up share capital of at least HK$25 million; the requirements for a Hong Kong stablecoin licence lists the specific conditions. Singapore has a dedicated framework for single-currency stablecoins issued locally and pegged to the Singapore dollar or a G10 currency, which Singapore stablecoins explains in detail.
How Should Reserve Assets Be Managed?
The GENIUS Act requires issuers to hold identifiable reserves on at least a 1:1 basis, limited to assets such as US dollar cash, demand deposits at insured depository institutions, US Treasuries with a remaining maturity of 93 days or less, overnight repos and government money market funds. Issuers must also publish the composition of their reserves on their website every month, have it examined by a registered public accounting firm, and have the CEO and CFO certify the accuracy of the monthly report; issuers may not pay interest to holders.
MiCA requires EMTs to be issued at par value and to be redeemable at par value at any time, with at least 30% of funds received deposited in separate accounts at credit institutions; paying interest is likewise prohibited. The HKMA requires the market value of reserve assets to be at all times no less than the par value of stablecoins in circulation, and redemption requests to be processed within one business day. The types of reserve assets and the difference between audits and attestations are covered in fiat-backed stablecoins.
What Technical Components Are Needed to Issue a Stablecoin?
The IMF’s stablecoin report summarises the basic flow: a buyer transfers funds to the issuer, which mints stablecoins and adds the funds to its reserves; the issuer can choose which blockchain to run on and implement compliance mechanisms such as allowlists and blocklists through smart contracts. The GENIUS Act also requires issuers to have the technical ability to comply with lawful orders, including seizing, freezing or burning stablecoins or preventing their transfer.
Key management for minting and burning permissions is critical. The HKMA’s supervisory guidance requires that operations such as minting, burning, pausing, blacklisting and freezing cannot be carried out by a single party, and that smart contracts be audited at least annually and on every deployment. The full minting and redemption flow, role separation and approval design are described in detail in how stablecoin issuers can build secure reserve wallet infrastructure.
Can a Business Without a Licence Issue a Stablecoin?
Not on its own in the jurisdictions above. The GENIUS Act states explicitly that it is unlawful for anyone other than a permitted payment stablecoin issuer to issue a payment stablecoin in the US; MiCA likewise provides that only qualifying EMT issuers may make a public offer or seek admission to trading in the EU. Hong Kong’s licensing requirements also cover stablecoins issued outside Hong Kong that are pegged to the Hong Kong dollar.
What an unlicensed business can do is partner with a licensed stablecoin issuer, or start by distributing and using stablecoins. In that case the business still needs secure wallets and approval workflows of its own; how stablecoin companies use WaaS describes how issuers and payment companies each use it.
Conclusion
Issuing a stablecoin follows the order of licence first, then reserves, then technology: choose an issuing jurisdiction and obtain authorization, manage reserves and redemptions under local rules, and then place minting, burning and freezing permissions under multi-party key management. Safeheron’s MPC Wallet-as-a-Service provides businesses with MPC key management and a policy engine.
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