Coinbase CPO says CLARITY Act stablecoin interest clause won’t hurt bank deposits

Coinbase Chief Policy Officer Faryar Shirzad pushed back on the American Bankers Association’s claim that a provision in the CLARITY Act allowing interest on stablecoins would trigger deposit outflows from community banks, according to a CoinDesk op-ed. Shirzad wrote the American Bankers Association argues community bank deposits could leave if stablecoin rewards are allowed, but there is no clear correlation between stablecoin interest and bank deposits. Shirzad added Coinbase has paid interest on USDC for more than four years, while community bank deposits rose by about $482 billion, or 26%, from June 2019 to March 2026. Shirzad also said the CLARITY Act would give banks their broadest legal authority since the 1999 Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, including in custody, staking, lending, payments and market-making, with community banks set to benefit the most.