BlackRock has launched two blockchain-based money market funds with a clearly defined purpose: to serve as eligible reserve assets that stablecoin issuers can hold under the US GENIUS Act (S.1582). This marks the first time the world’s largest asset manager has aimed a “tokenized money market fund” specifically at the use case of stablecoin reserves, rather than general institutional cash management. See the original report at Cointelegraph, and cross-reference the bill text on the S.1582 page at congress.gov. It’s important to be clear: this news concerns the reserve side of stablecoins — not card issuance, and not settlement.
Editorial take: which layer does this actually touch
The money flow behind a USDT virtual card typically runs through three stages: you top up in ₮ → the issuer/program converts it into a fiat or stablecoin settlement position → the Visa/Mastercard network clears the transaction to the merchant. BlackRock’s two funds operate at the layer where issuers hold reserves — in other words, what Tether, Circle, and similar issuers buy with the dollars backing your ₮. It does not change the fee structure you see on the MPCard review page, nor does it change the limits or BIN of Bybit Card.
What’s genuinely worth watching is the second-order effect. The GENIUS Act narrowly defines “eligible reserves” as short-term Treasuries, overnight reverse repos, and qualifying government money market fund shares. Once BlackRock turns these shares into an on-chain form that can be transferred and redeemed in real time, issuers’ compliance costs drop meaningfully — and the gap between “compliant stablecoins” and “offshore stablecoins” will widen. Expected timeline for cardholders:
- Within 7 days: No impact. No card’s fees, limits, or KYC process will change because of this.
- Within 30 days: Watch whether issuers update their “settlement asset” disclosures. A few card programs targeting US merchants may pre-emptively announce support for compliant stablecoin funding.
- Within 90 days: If the US Treasury/OCC’s implementation rules enter a comment period, US-facing card programs (including licensed-institution products like Coinbase Card) will move first. Offshore USDT card programs will largely stay put.
This also explains why MPCard’s US Direct variant is currently suspended from issuance, while Asia Elite remains our editorial pick — the chain of Asia-Pacific account + Asia-Pacific IP + Asia-Pacific card BIN doesn’t depend on the US payment-stablecoin licensing regime in the first place. Readers who want to understand this structure can start with What Is a U Card.
Historical comparison: not the first time, but a different nature
Three comparable events:
The March 2023 USDC depeg. The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank left roughly $3.3 billion of Circle’s reserves stranded, and USDC briefly fell to around $0.87. The users hit hardest at the time were those who kept balances parked in USDC long-term. That episode exposed banking risk on the reserve side; this time, it’s the legal qualification of reserve instruments being standardized — the opposite direction, effectively patching the hole from 2023.
The March 2024 BUIDL launch. BlackRock’s first tokenized fund was aimed broadly at institutional cash management, with a wide range of use cases. The difference this time is that these two new funds were “built for reserve eligibility” — the law came first, the product came second, rather than a product looking for a use case.
MiCAR taking effect in 2024. After the EU’s stablecoin provisions took effect on June 30, 2024, several exchanges delisted USDT for EEA users, forcing European users to switch currencies and cards. The GENIUS Act follows the same logic: licensing determines who can circulate domestically. The difference is that the US path gives offshore dollar stablecoins a longer buffer period, and per the bill text, the effective date is the earlier of “18 months after enactment” or “120 days after the primary regulator’s final rule” — it does not take effect immediately. European readers can refer to the EU compliance guide for how to plan around this.
Compliance boundaries: what’s still gray
- Clearly permitted: Individuals holding and using USDT for payments. The GENIUS Act constrains issuers, not cardholders.
- Clearly tightening: The issuance and promotion of non-qualified payment stablecoins within the United States. This will feed through to eligibility for card programs targeting US residents — see the US compliance guide for details.
- Still gray: Offshore-issued USDT used by US cardholders for everyday spending through third-party card programs. There is currently neither an explicit ban nor an explicit exemption. Tether’s reserve composition can be independently checked on its official transparency page, which is the primary source for judging whether it could eventually pursue US licensing.
- A separate timeline: Hong Kong’s Stablecoins Ordinance took effect on August 1, 2025, following a licensing model with logic similar to the US approach but a different scope of application — see the Hong Kong compliance guide.
Four things to watch next
- The Treasury/OCC’s proposed GENIUS implementation rules — these will set the specific bar for “qualified money market funds,” which in turn determines whether BlackRock’s two funds actually qualify.
- Whether Tether applies for a licensed US issuance path, and whether its offshore and US versions disclose reserves separately.
- The initial list of holders in BlackRock’s two funds — this only counts as real traction if stablecoin issuers show up, not just market makers.
- Issuer settlement-asset disclosures. Very few mainstream U cards currently disclose this publicly; whoever discloses first over the next 12 months will have the more credible compliance narrative.
Editorial recommendations
Users holding MPCard Asia Elite, Bybit Card, or other Asia-Pacific/offshore card programs: no action needed. This news does not change your fees, limits, or card issuance process, and there is no evidence it will trigger mass card suspensions.
Users planning to apply for a new US-BIN card: consider holding off for 30–60 days, until the direction of the implementation rules becomes clearer, so you avoid opening a card mid-transition only to be forced to migrate a few months later.
Users who keep large balances parked in stablecoins long-term: the lesson from USDC in 2023 still holds — a U card is a payment tool, not a store-of-value account. Top up according to your monthly spending, and keep the rest in a wallet you control. Readers looking to reduce holding costs can check the lowest-fee U card ranking and recalculate their annualized friction cost.
What not to do: Don’t switch cards, switch currencies, or make a large pre-emptive currency conversion just because of a reserve-side news item. Changes to reserve eligibility propagate on a quarterly timescale, while card program fee changes are typically announced 15–30 days in advance — you have plenty of time to react.