GENIUS Act Clears Senate, Heads to the House

PLUS: Templar launches on mainnet, Elastos unveils BTC-backed stablecoin, Blockchain Group adds 182 BTC, and Spanish bank BBVA recommends Bitcoin allocation.

Author

Michael Stinson
June 20, 2025

Happy Friday, Maestros!

Welcome to another edition of the Bitcoin Renaissance!

The U.S. Senate passed the GENIUS Act to regulate stablecoins. Elastos launched BTCD, a new Bitcoin-backed stablecoin. Blockchain Group boosted its BTC holdings to 1,653 coins. BBVA now advises wealthy clients to allocate 3%–7% of portfolios to Bitcoin and Ethereum.

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U.S. Senate passes GENIUS Act to regulate stablecoins. In a landmark 68‑30 vote, the Senate approved the bipartisan GENIUS Act, establishing federal guardrails for dollar‑pegged stablecoins—mandating full asset backing and regular disclosures—now advancing to the House for final approval

Elastos debuts BTC-backed stablecoin BTCD. The Bitcoin DeFi project Elastos launched BTCD, a BTC-collateralized stablecoin aiming to reimagine digital asset stability by anchoring it to Bitcoin rather than traditional commodities.

The Blockchain Group adds 182 BTC to holdings. This BTC treasury firm boosted its balance to 1,653 BTC (~$170 M), reporting a remarkable 1,173% yield this year.

Spanish bank BBVA advises Bitcoin allocation. BBVA now recommends wealthy clients allocate 3%–7% of portfolios to Bitcoin and Ethereum, marking a notable shift for traditional banking.

💡Spotlight: Templar

We’re excited to spotlight Templar Protocol, a novel Bitcoin-based lending protocol that brings borrowing to Bitcoin without wrapping, bridging, or KYC. With a focus on Cypher Lending, Templar is pioneering a permissionless way to access liquidity against native BTC.

History

Templar was created to solve a clear pain point in Bitcoin finance: while BTC has become a leading store of value, actually using it as productive capital in DeFi has lagged far behind. Templar aims to fix this — not by wrapping Bitcoin or relying on centralized bridges, but by introducing a new primitive: Cypher Lending.

In their words: “Templar is what happens when you merge the ethos of Bitcoin with the functionality of DeFi.” Built with simplicity and privacy in mind, Templar’s approach redefines lending — no middlemen, no custodians, and no compromise on decentralization.

Key Features

  • Native BTC Collateralization: Borrow stablecoins by locking native BTC — no need to wrap or bridge.

  • No KYC, No Custody: Templar upholds Bitcoin values. There’s no identity check, and users retain full custody of their assets until liquidation.

  • On-Chain Settlement and Audits: All loans, collateral, and liquidations are verifiable on-chain. Transparent and trustless by design.

  • Designed for Scale and Simplicity: With no intermediaries and a streamlined smart contract system, Templar is built to scale securely.

Recent News

On May 27, 2025, Templar officially launched on mainnet, marking a major milestone for Bitcoin-native DeFi. With this release, users can now borrow dollars against Bitcoin in a fully decentralized way, without wrapping, bridging, or relying on intermediaries. The team emphasized that this is just the beginning of a multi-phase rollout designed to expand access and functionality across the protocol.

Future Outlook

Templar represents a significant leap forward for Bitcoin-native finance. By staying true to Bitcoin’s core principles and introducing innovative lending mechanics, the protocol is helping to unlock a new era of self-sovereign DeFi. Over the next two months, Templar plans to roll out new features, expand to additional chains and stablecoins, enhance liquidity, and begin issuing invite codes to onboard a broader user base.

Learn more about Templar here!

📣 Trending on X

Shares of circle surged 34% on Wednesday, with an additional 6% gain after-hours, following the U.S. Senate’s passage of a landmark bill establishing a regulatory framework for dollar-backed stablecoins.

Cardone Capital, the $5 billion investment firm led by Grant Cardone, has expanded its crypto holdings with the purchase of an additional 150 Bitcoin — a move worth approximately $15.6 million.

In bullish news, South Korea is set to greenlight #Bitcoin and crypto ETFs in the second half of 2025.

Someone stacked 300 Bitcoin over a decade ago, held strong for 11 years, and just cashed out for $31 million 🤯