Crypto Groups Push Senate to Act on U.S. Market Structure Bill Before May 25 Deadline

Momentum around the U.S. crypto market structure bill has slowed to a halt over the past month, leaving lawmakers with a narrowing window before elections and other legislative priorities take over.

“The crypto market structure bill has not made much public movement in a month”

@coindesk

CoinDesk’s “State of Crypto” newsletter says “the clock for passage is running out,” and frames Memorial Day — “May 25” — as a “drop-dead” date that has been seen “since at least last December.”

@coindesk

The same CoinDesk account warns that staff statements from the Securities and Exchange Commission are “not permanent guidance,” and that the SEC would need time for rules to go through a notice-and-comment period.

CoinDesk also describes the bill’s purpose as cementing “crypto industry goals and regulations into law,” making it “that much more difficult for a future administration to undo those rules.”

In parallel, WEEX and Bitget both echo the idea that “May 25 may be the ‘deadline’ for progress,” and they tie the timeline to Congress leaving Washington to campaign.

Bitget adds that “any meaningful progress must happen by the end of May for the bill to pass ahead of the polls,” while also pointing to the House need to consider a bill funding the Department of Homeland Security and the Senate’s decision on Kevin Warsh.

Across the coverage, the legislative calendar is portrayed as the central constraint: CoinDesk says “lawmakers are going to leave town to run their campaigns,” and Bitget says the crypto bill is competing with other high-priority items.

The sources describe multiple procedural and substantive obstacles that keep the CLARITY Act from moving quickly, even as the industry pushes for action.

CoinDesk says “Much of what’s happened around market structure issues — Securities and Exchange Commission staff statements, for example — are not permanent guidance,” and it emphasizes that the SEC “has time to come up with rules that go through a notice-and-comment period, but that'll take time.”

Bitbo

WEEX similarly notes that “statements from staff at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) are not permanent guidance,” and it repeats that SEC rulemaking would require time for public notice and comment.

Bitget frames the same dynamic as a need for “clear, binding rules” in the near future, warning that the current approach lacks permanence.

On the legislative side, CoinDesk says the House will need to vote again even after issues are resolved, and it points to the House and Senate versions as a key reason the Senate might find common ground.

CoinDesk quotes House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill saying “many of the outstanding issues around sales practices for stablecoins and decentralized finance had already been sorted out by the House in its version of the bill,” and it adds that “the Senate should be able to find common ground.”

Bitbo adds that a coalition urged the Senate Banking Committee to “notice and proceed towards a markup” of the Clarity Act, and it specifies that the letter was “dated April 23.”

Bitbo also says the coalition wants “a predictable federal baseline across all 50 states,” and it highlights clarifying SEC and CFTC authority over tokenized financial instruments.

Even in the more detailed crypto.news account, the bill is described as facing “five major hurdles in just a few weeks,” with bank lobbying intensifying against stablecoin yield provisions and Senate floor time consumed by the Kevin Warsh Fed nomination fight.

The sources show the crypto industry and allied groups pressing for Senate action, while lawmakers and policy figures emphasize both urgency and specific negotiation points.

Bitbo reports that a broad coalition led by the Crypto Council for Innovation and the Blockchain Association addressed a letter to Chairman Tim Scott, Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren, Digital Assets Subcommittee Chair Senator Cynthia Lummis, and Ranking Member Ruben Gallego, urging the committee to “notice and proceed towards a markup” of the Clarity Act.

Bitbo says the coalition praised the committee’s work on issues including preserving “transaction-based consumer rewards tied to payment stablecoins,” clarifying SEC and CFTC authority over tokenized financial instruments, protecting developers of decentralized technologies, and creating “a predictable federal baseline across all 50 states.”

The same Bitbo account quotes the coalition’s framing that “The United States cannot risk a return to the previous era of regulation by enforcement, which perpetuated uncertainty for both builders and market participants.”

It also says the letter warned that “timely action is critical” because the lack of a comprehensive U.S. framework risks pushing “investment, jobs, and technological development offshore.”

CoinDesk adds that “more than 100 signed an open letter last week urging a markup hearing in the Senate Banking Committee,” and it notes that it is “unclear how close the committee is to moving forward.”

CoinDesk also brings in House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill, who told CoinDesk that the Senate could build on House work, saying “I think you see that quite clearly in the Senate Agriculture markup.”

On the Senate side, crypto.news highlights Senator Bernie Moreno’s end-of-May ultimatum, quoting him: “I think we’re going to get it done by the end of May,” and it also reports his warning that if the bill isn’t passed by then, digital asset legislation “will likely be impossible” to advance for the foreseeable future.

crypto.news further quotes Moreno dismissing bank pushback, saying “There’s a lot of noise in the market, but most of it is fake,” and it reports that he argued banks “also need to innovate.”

The sources portray the CLARITY Act’s path as constrained not only by the May 25 deadline but also by the Senate’s schedule, including the Kevin Warsh Fed chair nomination.

CoinDesk says “This week - There are no major hearings or policy events scheduled,” while adding that “the Senate Banking Committee may notice a vote on Kevin Warsh's nomination for Fed Chair.”

Blockhead

Bitget similarly says “the Senate Banking Committee is expected to hold a vote on Kevin Warsh’s nomination for Fed Chair,” and it frames that as a potential distraction from the crypto bill.

crypto.news describes the Warsh nomination fight as a direct drain on Banking Committee time, stating that “Every day the Warsh hearing occupies the agenda is a day the markup does not happen,” and it adds that Congress is due to leave town for Memorial Day recess on “May 21.”

In the same crypto.news account, the bill’s legislative process is described as a “five-step gauntlet,” including “a Banking Committee markup,” “a 60-vote Senate floor passage,” “reconciliation with the Agriculture version,” “reconciliation with the House bill,” and “finally President Donald Trump’s signature.”

CoinDesk’s “State of Crypto” also emphasizes that even if issues are resolved, “the House will need to vote again on the bill,” and it notes that the SEC’s notice-and-comment process would take time.

Bitbo’s coalition letter is positioned as a push for the committee to move toward markup, and it says the letter urged “notice and proceed towards a markup” rather than waiting for later.

The crypto.news account also reports that the Senate Banking Committee “still hasn’t held a single formal vote on the package,” even though the House approved its version “294–134” in July 2025 and the Senate Agriculture Committee cleared its own text “back in January.”

It further notes that Senator Cynthia Lummis has said DeFi provisions are already finalized and called this “our last chance,” while Coinbase Chief Policy Officer Faryar Shirzad projected an “April markup and a May floor vote” if leadership moves.

Beyond the legislative mechanics, the sources describe how the clock is already shaping expectations and how industry groups warn about capital moving elsewhere.

crypto.news says prediction markets now give the Act “less than a 50% chance of becoming law in 2026,” and it reports that odds on Polymarket for the CLARITY Act being signed into law in 2026 climbed “from around 38% to the mid‑40s” after Senator Bernie Moreno’s April 22 remarks, while remaining “far from a confident yes.”

Blockonomi

The same account says one recent update pegged the “yes” probability at roughly “44%,” and it notes earlier spikes above “80%” when White House adviser Patrick Witt signaled that remaining hurdles were “toppling fast.”

It also describes a broader fear that delay will push innovation and development toward friendlier jurisdictions, stating that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has warned that “every month of U.S. dithering pushes digital asset innovation toward hubs like Dubai and Singapore.”

Bitbo’s coalition letter similarly frames the bill as a test of U.S. leadership, warning that without timely action the lack of a comprehensive U.S. framework risks pushing “investment, jobs, and technological development offshore.”

CoinDesk’s “State of Crypto” adds that without the Clarity Act, “it’s entirely possible that we’ll have this same conversation in a few years,” because market structure legislation is meant to make it “more difficult for a future administration to undo those rules.”

The sources also show that industry groups are trying to convert urgency into concrete committee action, with CoinDesk noting the open letter urging a markup hearing and Bitbo describing the coalition’s push to “notice and proceed towards a markup.”

Looking at the near-term, CoinDesk says “This week - There are no major hearings or policy events scheduled,” while Bitget says the Senate Banking Committee may focus on the Warsh vote.

Taken together, the next steps described in the sources are a Senate Banking Committee markup, a 60-vote Senate floor passage, and reconciliation with the Agriculture and House versions before President Donald Trump’s signature.