The Senate Banking Committee advanced the Clarity Act on a 13-11 party-line vote today, clearing the most comprehensive crypto market structure legislation to reach the Senate floor since the regulatory confusion began years ago. White House administration sources confirmed the bill would pass committee ahead of the live markup session.
Senator John Kennedy locked in the final Republican vote this morning, giving the 309-page Digital Asset Market Clarity Act the threshold it needed. Chairman Tim Scott and Senator Cynthia Lummis led the markup, framing the legislation as an end to the regulatory gray zone that pushed innovation offshore and left Americans exposed.
What the Clarity Act Does
The bill draws jurisdictional lines between the SEC and CFTC, mandates 1:1 reserves for payment stablecoins, and extends protections to DeFi developers writing non-custodial code. It doesn’t pick winners between traditional finance and decentralized rails. It sets the baseline for how crypto operates in America for the next decade, covering markets the piecemeal GENIUS Act stablecoin bill from July 2025 left untouched.
That earlier bill cleared the same Banking Committee process last summer. Bitcoin hit an all-time high of $123,000 within weeks. The Clarity Act is broader. It addresses the entire crypto market structure, not just dollar-backed tokens.
Years of Regulatory Limbo, One Markup
Scott opened the session saying the bill “gives Americans confidence that the system works for them and not against them” and that “the future of finance should be built in America.” The Banking Committee GOP account hammered the same theme: protect Main Street, keep innovation domestic, safeguard national security. Not partisan goals, American priorities.
For years, digital assets existed in a regulatory vacuum that made enforcement arbitrary and compliance impossible. Firms couldn’t get clear guidance on whether their token was a security or a commodity. Exchanges operated under consent orders or moved to Dubai. The Clarity Act brings that era to a close, assuming it survives the Senate floor.
The bill now heads to the full Senate. If it passes there, it goes to President Trump’s desk. The markup went live at 10:30 a.m. Eastern. The vote wasn’t close, but it was enough.
