Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) has put forward what he’s calling a final amendment to the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, targeting one of the thorniest issues in crypto regulation: whether stablecoins should be allowed to offer yields that look, smell, and function like traditional bank deposits.
The answer, according to the compromise Tillis finalized with Sen. Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), is no. At least not the passive, sit-back-and-collect-interest kind. The amendment prohibits “covered parties” from offering interest or yield on stablecoins that is “economically or functionally similar” to traditional bank deposits for US customers.
The deposit flight problem
The American Bankers Association has been one of the loudest voices in the room, pushing for language tight enough to close any potential loopholes. As of May 2026, the ABA has requested additional technical refinements to the bill’s language to ensure that the prohibition actually holds up in practice.
The Tillis-Alsobrooks compromise draws a line between passive yields on idle stablecoin holdings, which would be banned, and activity-based rewards, which would still be permitted. Coinbase has been vocal about the need to preserve the ability to reward users for holding stablecoins on their platform, even as the company has signaled support for the broader compromise.
