SEC Cuts Stablecoin Haircut From 100% to 2% for Broker-Dealers

Highlights:

• SEC has allowed broker-dealers to apply a 2% stablecoin haircut instead of a full 100% deduction.
• Qualifying payment stablecoins can now count toward net capital like money market funds.
• Updated guidance will support tokenized securities and broader on-chain settlement activity.

The Division of Trading and Markets issued guidance allowing broker-dealers to apply a 2% valuation adjustment to qualifying payment stablecoins. Staff said they would not object to that treatment under the net capital rule. Many firms had applied a 100% deduction to those holdings. That practice reduced their regulatory value to zero.

🚨 NEW! –> SEC Guidance Allows Security Tokens to Trade Directly With #Bitcoin — SEC allows direct trading between security tokens and assets like Bitcoin without fiat conversion—Broker-dealers can treat proprietary stablecoins as readily marketable with a 2% haircut #CLARITY pic.twitter.com/zOLUrQqsYF

— 🇬🇧 ChartNerd 📊 (@ChartNerdTA) February 20, 2026

The update changes how firms calculate capital. A broker-dealer may now count $98 of every $100 in approved stablecoins toward required net capital. Previously, those balances provided no benefit inside regulated entities. As a result, several firms avoided keeping stablecoins on broker-dealer books.

Commissioner Hester Peirce addressed the change in a statement titled “Cutting by Two Would Do.” She said the earlier approach did not reflect the structure of compliant payment stablecoins. She added:

“Stablecoins are essential to transacting on blockchain rails. Using stablecoins will make it feasible for broker-dealers to engage in a broader range of business activities relating to tokenized securities and other crypto assets.”

The staff position provides clarity within existing rules. It applies only to payment stablecoins that meet defined reserve and oversight standards.

Stablecoin Haircut Framework and Net Capital Mechanics

Rule 15c3-1 requires broker-dealers to maintain minimum net capital. Firms must hold a liquidity cushion that protects customers during financial stress. When calculating that cushion, firms reduce certain asset values through haircuts. Those reductions reflect perceived risk.

Cash receives no haircut. Big deductions are taken on more volatile assets. Practically, certain firms considered stablecoins as fully deducted positions. That method implied that balances in stablecoins did not matter in capital calculations. Therefore, there was no strong reason to retain them in regulated intermediaries.

The new 2% adjustment brings qualifying payment stablecoins nearer to conservative money market funds in treatment. Money market funds generally hold U.S. Treasuries and other short-term government securities. Compliant stablecoins have reserves of the same high-quality assets.

The GENIUS Act established reserve and oversight criteria on authorized issuers. Issuers are required to have full support and give clear redemption privileges. They are also required to work within regulatory control. Peirce said, “In my view, a 100% haircut would be unnecessarily punitive given the underlying reserve assets that back payment stablecoins.”

GENIUS Act Follow-Through and Market Structure Integration

The revised treatment follows legislative standards outlined in the GENIUS Act. Legislators established reserve levels and payment stablecoin compliance requirements. The staff guidance matches capital recognition to those standards. At the same time, the SEC updated its crypto FAQ covering trading venues.

Exchanges and alternative trading systems may pair crypto asset securities with non-securities such as bitcoin. The SEC also issued guidance last month that explains how existing securities laws apply to tokenized securities. The agency clarified that a tokenized security remains a traditional security under U.S. law, even when issued or transferred on blockchain networks.

🚨NEW: @SECGov staff just put out guidance on tokenized securities, laying out how federal securities laws apply and distinguishing between issuer-led and third-party tokenization models. pic.twitter.com/KWZTtwgmoe

— Eleanor Terrett (@EleanorTerrett) January 28, 2026

SEC Chair Paul Atkins also said innovation exemption rules for crypto firms will help companies launch decentralized finance products more quickly under existing securities laws.