Canada includes 'plan for a stablecoin regulation bill' in the budget as planned

The Canadian government said it plans to introduce a stablecoin (a virtual asset whose value is linked to fiat currency) regulation bill in the 2025 federal budget.

On the 5th (Korean time), Cointelegraph, a media outlet specializing in virtual assets (cryptocurrencies), reported that the Canadian government announced the budget and disclosed details about the stablecoin-related bill.

Specifically, the bill includes provisions to require stablecoin issuers to maintain sufficient asset reserves, establish redemption policies, build risk management systems, and implement personal data protection measures. In addition, Canada's stablecoins are planned to be designed as a payment means that consumers and businesses can use safely, including safeguards at the national security level.

The Bank of Canada plans to use 10 million dollars over two years starting from the 2026~2027 fiscal year to draft the related bill, and thereafter plans to cover administrative costs by collecting about 5 million dollars annually from stablecoin issuers.

The government also plans to amend the 'Retail Payment Activities Act' to provide a regulatory basis for payment service providers that perform payment functions using stablecoins. The government said it will also work with the private sector to strengthen innovation and explore ways to adopt trust-based artificial intelligence (AI) to promote the use of AI within the financial sector.

Meanwhile, Canada withdrew plans to issue a central bank digital currency (CBDC) in September last year.