More Than 100 Crypto Firms Urge U.S. Senate Banking Committee to Advance CLARITY Act

A coalition of more than 100 crypto firms urged the U.S. Senate to move on a market-structure bill for digital assets, pressing the Senate Banking Committee to advance the CLARITY Act.

“More than 100 crypto firms urge Senate to move on U”

@coindesk

CoinDesk reported that the Senate Banking Committee “will no longer proceed with the detailed markup” of its cryptocurrency market structure bill this Thursday after Coinbase “publicly withdrew its support” and other negotiations weakened the effort.

@coindesk

In a letter to Senate Banking Committee leaders, the coalition said action by government agencies alone cannot deliver stable rules and warned about “regulation by enforcement,” citing a series of court cases brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

The Block described the push as arriving as Senate talks “turned on stablecoin rewards, ethics concerns, and a broader list of legislative hurdles,” and said “timely action is critical” as the lack of a comprehensive U.S. framework risks pushing “investment, jobs, and technological development offshore.”

The Block also said the letter cast the bill as “a test of whether the U.S. wants to remain central to digital finance.”

CoinDesk said the bill was postponed on Wednesday evening and “no new date has been set,” after Tim Scott said he had spoken with leaders in the crypto industry, the financial sector, and his Democratic and Republican colleagues.

In the same CoinDesk reporting, Tim Scott said, “I have spoken with leaders in the crypto industry, in the financial sector, as well as with my Democratic and Republican colleagues, and all remain at the table in good-faith negotiations,” while also describing the goal as establishing “clear rules that protect consumers, strengthen our national security, and ensure the future of finance is built in the United States.”

The stalling of the Senate Banking Committee’s market-structure effort has centered on stablecoin rewards and ethics disputes, with multiple outlets tying the delay to those specific sticking points.

CoinDesk said that on “one of the central and most controversial points of the bill—the authorization of stablecoin reward programs—Wall Street bankers continued to mount vigorous lobbying against crypto yields,” and that the lobbying convinced “several lawmakers from both parties” that traditional banking was threatened.

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CoinDesk also described another sticking point for Democratic lawmakers as “ethical requirements that would restrict high-ranking government officials from personally profiting from the crypto industry,” and said the White House under President Donald Trump would have rejected proposals “targeted the interests of his own family.”

In that reporting, Tim Scott told CoinDesk that he determined the ethics matter “more properly fell under the purview of the Senate Ethics Committee rather than his own Banking Committee.”

The Block similarly framed the negotiations as turning on “stablecoin rewards, ethics concerns,” and said the coalition’s letter urged lawmakers to preserve “transaction-based consumer rewards tied to payment stablecoins.”

Bolsamania added that the initial delay in the Banking Committee came after industry objections, especially from Coinbase, which “retiró su apoyo al borrador después de las últimas enmiendas,” with the CEO citing “la eliminación de los programas de recompensas con 'stablecoins'.”

The Block also said the letter stressed that “agency guidance, while helpful, is not enough,” and warned that the U.S. cannot risk “a return to the previous era of regulation by enforcement.”

While the Banking Committee’s markup was postponed, crypto leaders and industry groups continued to press for action and to frame the CLARITY Act as a path to regulatory clarity.

@coindesk reported that the coalition’s letter urged the Senate Banking Committee to mark up the Clarity Act to create “a federal framework for digital assets,” and said key priorities included “defining clear SEC and CFTC oversight roles” and “protecting non-custodial developers.”

In that same reporting, Ji Hun Kim, CEO of the Crypto Council for Innovation, said in an email, “America needs clear, comprehensive rules for digital asset markets. It is a global race to the top, and it is important for the U.S. to lead,” and added that “A markup will move us closer to durable rules that ensure the U.S. sets the global standard for digital asset markets.”

The Block quoted the coalition’s letter warning that “The United States cannot risk a return to the previous era of regulation by enforcement,” and said “timely action is critical” as the lack of a comprehensive U.S. framework risks pushing “investment, jobs, and technological development offshore.”

Ripple’s CEO Brad Garlinghouse urged sustained engagement with Washington as discussions stalled, telling the Senate Banking Committee’s initiative for a cryptocurrency market structure bill that “Clarity is always better than chaos, and the industry needs clarity.”

In Bitcoin News’ account of Garlinghouse’s remarks, he wrote on X that “We are at the table and will continue to move forward with a fair debate. I remain optimistic that issues can be resolved through the markup process.”

Ripple’s general counsel Stuart Alderoty echoed that stance, writing, “Clear guardrails + market integrity = a stronger American financial system. It is time for the Senate to act.”

As the Banking Committee’s detailed markup was derailed, the Senate Agriculture Committee moved forward on its own version of the crypto market-structure legislation, setting up a parallel track that would still need reconciliation later.

Cryptopolitan reported that the Senate Agriculture Committee adopted the U.S. cryptocurrency market structure bill with Republican support after a briefing, with the lawmakers voting 12 to 11 on the bill in the end.

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In that account, Senator Dick Durbin’s amendment to prohibit the Federal Reserve and the Treasury from providing a taxpayer-funded bailout to crypto intermediaries in the event of bank failures was rejected 11 to 12, and Senator Michael Bennet’s amendment questioning profits earned by then-U.S. President Donald Trump from his family’s numerous cryptocurrency companies also failed 11-12.

Cryptopolitan said the committee transmitted the bill to the full Senate on Thursday by a party-line vote (12-11), and that the committee chair John Boozman confirmed adoption of the text and its consideration.

The same outlet said the bill is now subject to the approval of the Senate Banking Committee, which had postponed its briefing hearing scheduled earlier this month and had not yet announced a new date.

CoinDesk’s coverage of the Banking Committee postponement similarly said the Senate Agriculture Committee “had already postponed its own review session until the end of the month,” but that the process could still have a chance to proceed because Agriculture must adopt a related bill before the two are merged into a final law.

Bolsamania added that the Agriculture Committee published its own version of the text and that it would define when crypto tokens are securities, commodities, or belong to other categories, and would establish jurisdiction for the SEC and the CFTC.

The sources describe a legislative sequence in which the Banking Committee’s postponed markup and the Agriculture Committee’s advancement both feed into a later Senate vote, while negotiations continue over stablecoin yields and ethics.

CoinDesk said the Banking Committee postponed its first major vote on the broad cryptocurrency regulation bill and that “no new date has been set,” while also noting that the Agriculture Committee’s schedule could still allow the process to proceed if the two bills are merged.

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In the same CoinDesk reporting, David Sacks urged the crypto industry to resolve internal differences, saying on X, “Adoption of the market-structure legislation is as close as it has ever been,” and “This is the moment to set the rules of the game and to ensure the sector’s future.”

The Block said the coalition’s letter warned that “timely action is critical” and described the bill as creating “a predictable federal baseline across all 50 states,” tying the next step to whether lawmakers can reach agreement on the remaining hurdles.

Bolsamania reported that the Agriculture Committee has a hearing scheduled for “el 27 de enero,” and said that on that date Democrats could present amendments and change the text before a vote, with the modified version then needing to be reconciled with the Banking Committee’s version.

Bolsamania also said that “Posteriormente, el proyecto de ley iría al pleno del Senado, donde se necesitan 60 votos para aprobarlo,” giving a concrete threshold for passage.

Cryptopolitan likewise said the Agriculture Committee transmitted its version to the full Senate by a party-line vote (12-11), but emphasized that the bill is still subject to approval by the Senate Banking Committee.