U.S. Senate Banking Committee delays vote on cryptocurrency market structure bill

Source: Cryptonews Original Title: Chairman Tim Scott postpones vote on cryptocurrency bill Original Link:

Vote Postponed

The U.S. Senate Banking Committee, led by Chairman Tim Scott, has postponed the markup vote on the cryptocurrency market structure bill originally scheduled for Thursday, with no new date announced yet.

“I have spoken with leaders from the crypto industry, the financial sector, and my Democratic and Republican colleagues, and everyone remains actively engaged in good-faith negotiations,” Scott stated in a Wednesday release.

Meanwhile, the committee will continue bipartisan negotiations to garner broader support.

“This market structure bill reflects months of serious bipartisan negotiations and genuine input from innovators, investors, and law enforcement,” Scott added, emphasizing that the ultimate goal is “to establish clear rules that protect consumers.”

Bill Background

The markup vote is a critical step in the legislative process, where the committee discusses the bill line-by-line, proposes amendments as needed, and votes on whether to advance it to the full Senate.

The highly anticipated bill under consideration will determine how the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) regulate digital asset markets.

Industry Opposition

The House of Representatives passed a version of the bill called the CLARITY Act in mid-2025. However, under congressional procedures, both the Senate Banking Committee and the Agriculture Committee must approve the legislation before it can move forward.

The Senate Agriculture Committee also postponed its markup vote on January 13, originally scheduled for the same Thursday. Chairman John Bozeman stated that more time was needed to ensure sufficient votes.

Crypto market participants remain cautious, as one provision of the bill proposes strict restrictions on stablecoin yields, which has become a major point of controversy.

Notably, a compliance platform, as a key industry participant and major lobbyist for the crypto sector, has threatened to withdraw support for the Senate version of the bill after raising concerns about how the provisions could negatively impact its stablecoin business.