The passage of the GENIUS Act in 2025 marks a revolutionary step in how money and payments will work in the United States. It is the first comprehensive federal law specifically regulating stablecoins—digital currencies pegged to traditional money like the U.S. dollar. This new legislation is poised to reshape your experience with money, making payments faster, more transparent, and potentially cheaper, while introducing clear consumer protections and regulatory standards for digital currencies.

What is the GENIUS Act?

The GENIUS Act stands for Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins. It establishes a clear legal framework for stablecoins, which are designed to hold a steady value (usually $1) unlike the more volatile cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. Stablecoins are increasingly used for routine transactions such as paying bills, sending remittances, or transferring money across borders.

Under the new law:

• Only authorized issuers like banks, credit unions, and federally approved non-bank financial institutions can issue stablecoins.
• Issuers must maintain 100% reserves—meaning for every digital coin issued, there must be a corresponding $1 held in cash, U.S. Treasury securities, or other approved liquid assets.
• Issuers are required to undergo regular audits and publish disclosures about their reserves.
• If an issuer fails or goes bankrupt, holders of stablecoins get priority in getting their money back ahead of other creditors.

This stringent reserve and audit requirement provides much-needed transparency and trust for consumers.

Key Consumer Benefits and Protections

1. Faster, Cheaper Payments
   Integrating stablecoins into mainstream banking systems can speed up transactions dramatically. You could receive paychecks instantly, send money overseas with minimal fees, and settle payments without the delays typical of current banking transfers.
2. Clear Regulation and Oversight
   Before the GENIUS Act, the regulatory environment was fragmented and uncertain. Now, stablecoins have a federal framework that coordinates oversight between federal and state regulators to prevent fraud, money laundering, and abuses.
3. Privacy and Government Limits
   The law bans the Federal Reserve from creating retail Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs)—digital dollars controlled directly by the government—addressing privacy concerns about surveillance of everyday spending.
4. Financial Stability and Consumer Priority
   The Act gives stablecoin holders priority status in bankruptcy cases, meaning your digital dollars are protected better than traditional bank deposits or bondholder claims in insolvencies.

What This Means for You

The GENIUS Act could significantly change your daily financial life:

• You may start to see stablecoins integrated within banking apps, payroll systems, and payment services.
• Money transfers could become almost instantaneous and cost less, especially across borders.
• More businesses and financial institutions might accept digital dollars pegged to the U.S. dollar.
• Consumer protections could increase, with more audit oversight and clarity about your rights as a stablecoin holder.

However, challenges remain. Regulators have up to 18 months to finalize detailed rules on audits, reserve management, fraud prevention, and compliance. The evolving regulations will determine how safe and seamless digital currency payments become.

A Global Race to Modernize Money

While the U.S. passed the GENIUS Act to catch up, other countries like China and members of the European Union are already piloting their own digital currencies. The legislation positions the U.S. to retain the dollar’s dominant role globally by tying digital currencies directly to U.S. dollars and Treasury securities, potentially boosting demand for American debt and keeping borrowing costs stable.

The Future of Money and Payments

The GENIUS Act opens the door to a more modern, efficient financial system where digital dollars coexist with traditional money, offering consumers faster options and better protections. While adoption will take time, this law lays the groundwork for a future where your payments, savings, and everyday money management are fundamentally transformed by technology—making financial services more accessible, transparent, and resilient.

Whether you choose to use stablecoins actively or not, the changes unfolding will reach into many aspects of how money moves in our economy. Staying informed about this evolving landscape will help you navigate the future of payments confidently.

Paramount Global has secured the exclusive U.S. rights to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in a groundbreaking deal worth $7.7 billion over seven years, beginning in 2026. This agreement marks a major shift in UFC’s distribution, moving away from the traditional pay-per-view model currently offered by ESPN to a new streaming-focused strategy centered on Paramount’s platform, Paramount+. All 43 annual UFC live events, including 13 major numbered events and 30 Fight Nights, will be available exclusively on Paramount+ at no additional cost to subscribers, with select marquee events also simulcast on the CBS broadcast network.

The deal comes just days after Paramount completed its merger with Skydance Media and represents the company’s first major sports rights acquisition under its new leadership. Paramount CEO David Ellison emphasized the uniqueness of partnering exclusively with a global sports powerhouse like UFC, highlighting the move as a key part of Paramount’s strategy to enhance viewer engagement and grow its streaming subscriber base.

For UFC, the deal ends the pay-per-view model common in the sport, greatly increasing accessibility for fans and potentially expanding the sport’s U.S. audience. The contract also doubles the yearly average payment compared to the $550 million ESPN currently pays, reflecting the growing value and popularity of UFC content.

TKO Group Holdings, UFC’s parent company, sees this agreement as a milestone in their decade-long growth, with TKO’s CEO Ari Emanuel affirming trust in Paramount’s vision to leverage technology to improve storytelling and the viewing experience.

This landmark deal reflects the rapidly evolving sports media landscape, with streaming services increasingly vying for premium content to attract and retain subscribers. Paramount’s move to bring UFC to its platform exclusively is a strong statement of commitment to live sports as a vital driver of engagement in the streaming age.

Key Points:

• Paramount secured UFC U.S. media rights for $7.7 billion over 7 years, starting 2026.
• UFC events will be exclusively streamed on Paramount+, ending ESPN’s pay-per-view model.
• The deal includes 13 major numbered events and 30 Fight Nights annually.
• Some marquee events will also air on CBS broadcast TV.
• The yearly payment doubles ESPN’s previous contract.
• The deal was announced shortly after Paramount’s merger with Skydance.
• Paramount aims to use UFC to boost Paramount+ subscriber growth and engagement.
• TKO Group (UFC parent company) supports the deal and foresees enhanced tech-enabled storytelling.
• Streaming services continue to disrupt traditional sports broadcasting models.

The July jobs report delivered a sobering message: the U.S. labor market is slowing sharply just as higher tariffs are starting to take effect. Employers added only 73,000 jobs last month, far below forecasts that had anticipated at least 100,000 new positions. This figure, coupled with a slight rise in unemployment to 4.2%, reflects a tangible shift in labor market momentum, with analysts noting a pronounced downtrend over recent months.

Not only was July weak, but downward revisions to May and June show that those months were even worse than first reported. Payroll growth has averaged just 35,000 jobs a month during the past quarter—the slowest expansion since the pandemic. Sectors hit hardest include professional services, manufacturing, and government, while job gains concentrated in areas like health care and retail aren’t easily accessible to displaced workers without specialized skills.

So, what roles are tariffs playing in this slowdown? President Trump’s wide-ranging tariffs continue to raise costs for both businesses and consumers. The Budget Lab at Yale estimates all 2025 U.S. tariffs, paired with retaliation from trading partners, will lower real GDP growth by 0.5 percentage points this year and next—and lift unemployment by 0.3 to 0.4 percentage points, translating to nearly 500,000 fewer jobs by the end of 2025. The price effects are direct: Yale’s analysis projects a 1.8% short-run boost in consumer prices, costing households an average of $2,400 annually if companies pass cost increases along. J.P. Morgan has echoed these warnings, highlighting how tariffs—especially on auto imports—will lift prices and act as a drag on overall GDP growth.

For American workers, these combined forces—sluggish job creation and pricier goods—mean a tough stretch ahead. Many are taking longer to find new employment, and the willingness to quit and switch jobs has declined as available opportunities dry up. Meanwhile, many job gains are in sectors requiring skills not easily acquired by laid-off workers, deepening a growing mismatch in the labor market.

Analysts caution that the combined drag from slow hiring and rising tariffs could put consumer spending—long a driver of U.S. economic health—at risk. If this weak spell persists, further Federal Reserve interest rate cuts may be on the table.

In short, slower job growth and higher tariffs are squeezing American workers from both sides: jobs are harder to find, and day-to-day expenses are rising. While the economy remains resilient for now, the risks of further slowdown, or even recession, loom if these trends deepen through the end of 2025.