WASHINGTON, D.C. / Cryptowire / – U.S. Congress has approved a broad housing bill that includes a ban on a Federal Reserve digital dollar through Dec. 31, 2030, placing central bank digital currency policy inside a wider package on home supply and affordability. The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act cleared both chambers this week and now awaits final presidential action after a planned signing ceremony was canceled.
The bill passed the Senate 85-5 and the House 358-32, giving the measure wide bipartisan support. Its central bank digital currency section bars the Federal Reserve from issuing a CBDC or a substantially similar digital asset during the covered period. It also says the central bank cannot issue one directly or indirectly without authorization from Congress.
The broader bill focuses mainly on housing. It includes measures tied to new home construction, manufactured housing, community banks, federal housing programs and limits on large institutional investors buying certain single-family homes. The digital dollar language is separate from the housing provisions, but it has drawn attention from the cryptocurrency market because it addresses the role of public digital money in the United States.
Digital dollar ban
A central bank digital currency is a digital liability of a central bank that the public can use for payments. In the United States, physical currency is now the only form of central bank money widely available to the public. The Federal Reserve has said it has made no decision to issue a CBDC and would proceed only with an authorizing law.
President Donald Trump signed a digital asset executive order in January 2025 that directed federal agencies not to establish, issue or promote central bank digital currencies, except where required by law. The new bill places a similar restriction in legislation for the period ending Dec. 31, 2030. That makes the CBDC provision one of the most closely watched digital asset clauses in the housing package.
Crypto stock focus
The digital dollar language comes after enactment of the GENIUS Act in 2025, which created federal rules for payment stablecoins. Stablecoins are private digital tokens designed to keep a steady value, often at one dollar. Circle Internet Group issues USDC, one of the largest dollar-backed stablecoins. Coinbase Global operates a major crypto exchange and handles digital asset trading, custody and related services.
Latest available market data showed shares of Circle at $70.98, down 6.3% from the previous close, while Coinbase was at $150.11, down 5.1%. Robinhood Markets traded at $97.19, down 5.8%, and Strategy traded at $94.13, down 9.3%. Those stocks reflect different business models, with exposure spanning stablecoins, crypto trading, brokerage services and Bitcoin-linked balance sheet holdings.
For crypto stocks, the confirmed policy change in the bill concerns a public digital dollar, not token trading, custody, listings or Bitcoin holdings. Stablecoin issuers remain governed by the federal framework already in place under the GENIUS Act. The CBDC clause leaves final enactment pending, while Congress has already recorded its position on a Federal Reserve digital dollar through the end of 2030.