Crypto market-structure bill reaches Senate calendar as recess clock tightens
The CLARITY Act has bipartisan momentum, but ethics, banking and committee issues threaten to delay Senate action before the August recess.
By Rafael Ortiz · Fintech Correspondent
· 3 min read
A US digital-asset market-structure bill is eligible for Senate floor action after clearing the Senate Banking Committee 15-9, but it remains unscheduled as lawmakers approach an expected Aug. 7 recess. The House passed the CLARITY Act 294-134 on July 17, 2025, and delays now raise the risk that consideration moves into a tighter midterm-election calendar.
The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025, designated H.R. 3633, would split federal oversight of digital assets between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. In broad terms, the framework seeks to determine when a token is treated as a security, when it is treated as a commodity, and which regulator supervises issuers, exchanges, brokers and dealers.
The legislative effort follows earlier House action on FIT21, the Financial Innovation and Technology for the 21st Century Act, which passed 279-136 in May 2024 with support from 71 Democrats, according to House records. That bill did not move through the Senate before the end of the 118th Congress, but it established a template for the current package.
House Financial Services Chairman French Hill and House Agriculture Chairman G.T. Thompson introduced CLARITY on May 29, 2025, with bipartisan co-sponsors. The House Financial Services Committee approved it 32-19 on June 11, 2025, while the House Agriculture Committee approved it 47-6, reflecting the bill’s shared jurisdiction over securities and commodities issues.
The Senate has pursued a different path rather than taking up the House text unchanged. Senate Banking Chairman Tim Scott and Senators Cynthia Lummis, Bill Hagerty and Bernie Moreno released a discussion draft in July 2025 and followed with another version in September. Senate Agriculture Chairman John Boozman and Senator Cory Booker later released a companion draft focused on granting the CFTC new authority over digital commodities.
The process has repeatedly stalled over the relationship between crypto firms and banks. In January 2026, a planned Senate Banking markup was postponed after Coinbase said it could not support the draft in its then-current form. Disputes included whether exchanges and other intermediaries could offer rewards connected to stablecoin holdings.
Banking groups have argued that rewards on stablecoin balances could pull deposits from the banking system. Reuters reported in March that banks rejected a White House compromise that would have allowed rewards for certain payment or transactional activity but not for idle stablecoin holdings.
Senate Agriculture advanced its part of the framework on Jan. 29, approving the Digital Commodity Intermediaries Act, which would expand CFTC authority and add consumer protections for digital commodity markets. Senate Banking revived its effort in May after Scott, Lummis and Senator Thom Tillis released updated text, and the committee approved an amended version of H.R. 3633 two days later.
The amended Senate bill was reported and placed on the legislative calendar on June 1 as Calendar No. 423. That procedural step makes the bill available for floor consideration, but it does not require Senate leadership to allocate debate time or schedule a vote.
Ethics language has become a central unresolved issue. PYMNTS reported that Democratic negotiators are seeking restrictions tied to public officials’ financial interests in crypto, particularly after disclosures involving President Donald Trump’s crypto ventures. Other open matters include illicit finance provisions, limited review time and the need to reconcile Banking and Agriculture texts.
The bill is already shaping planning across banks, exchanges, issuers, custodians and investors by indicating the likely direction of federal rules on registration, asset classification, anti-money laundering obligations, custody and stablecoins. Large firms can begin preparing systems and staffing for a possible framework, while smaller companies face the cost of preparing for rules that may still change.
Adoption among middle-market companies remains limited, according to PYMNTS Intelligence. Its March report, Waiting for Certainty: Why Most CFOs Are Holding Back on Crypto and Stablecoins, found that 13% of firms use stablecoins and 5% use other cryptocurrencies.
This story draws on original reporting from PYMNTS.
