CLARITY Act draft would bar stablecoin interest, a risk to Coinbase USDC income

A CoinDesk report on March 19 said the current CLARITY Act draft would bar stablecoin issuers from paying interest directly to holders, which matters for Coinbase's USDC economics. The draft appears to carve out activity-based rewards, which could keep some of that income. Clear Street's Owen Lau said the near-term earnings effect looked limited because Coinbase largely passes stablecoin yield to users.

• Draft bars direct interest payments on stablecoins, with an activity-based rewards carve-out
• Coinbase stablecoin revenue was $1.35B in FY2025, up from $910M in 2024
• Coinbase shares down about 12% year to date; bitcoin down 19%