New York to Embrace Stablecoins as Payment Method for Bail Bonds

The authorities of New York state proposed certain amendments to the law that could allow residents to settle bail bonds in stablecoins instead of fiat currency. The bill could become official six months after the relevant regulators greenlight it.

Domestic lawmakers have previously introduced legislation that aims to make certain cryptocurrencies an official means of payment for civil penalties, fines, taxes, and other fees.

Another Crypto Step for New York State

New York Assembly Bill 7024, presented on May 10, seeks to establish a system for “the administration of the acceptance, recording, and processing of stablecoins as a means of securing bail.” However, the officials did not disclose which assets will be included in the potential legislation. 

The lawmakers pointed out the volatile nature of the cryptocurrency market, outlining that the court might require further guarantees if the valuation of stablecoins dropped over 50% from the value when bail was posted.

“If the court directs that bail be posted as provided in paragraph (j) of subdivision of this section and the value of the stablecoins falls more than fifty percent from the value of the stablecoins at the time bail was posted, the court may in its discretion, request the posting of additional bail as provided in subdivision one of this section,” the bill reads.

Stablecoins pegged to fiat currencies or precious metals are supposed to have a fixed price, but there have been some examples of the opposite. USDC (the second largest stablecoin) dropped to as low as $0.87 in March this year after Circle (the company behind the asset) revealed a multi-billion exposure to the collapsed Silicon Valley Bank. The firm fixed the issues in the following days by transferring the funds to another bank, and the token reclaimed its $1 price target.

The Previous Bills

The New York Senate has recently proposed another amendment that could enable locals to settle various fees (taxes, fines, civil penalties, and more) in Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), and Bitcoin Cash (BCH).

The legislation classifies crypto assets as “any form of digital currency in which encryption techniques are used to regulate the generation of units of currency and verify the transfer of funds, operating independently of a central bank.” 

The state of Arizona has also emerged as a crypto-friendly region. Senator Wendy Rogers introduced a bill in 2022 that seeks to make BTC legal tender. While not succeeding with her attempt, she proposed another legislation that could turn the primary cryptocurrency into an official means of payment in the area.