The encryption market structure bill faces obstacles, and May 25 may be the "deadline" for progress.

ChainCatcher News: Over the past month, there has been almost no public progress on the crypto market structure bill. Although it is difficult to predict the bill’s prospects with any precision, the time window for passing it is narrowing. Many actions already taken around market structure issues—such as statements from U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) staff—are not permanent guidance. The SEC has time to issue rules that require a public notice and comment period, but that will take time.

Market structure legislation is intended to codify the crypto industry’s goals and regulatory rules into law, making it more difficult for future governments to overturn those rules. In other words, without the Clarity Act, we could still be having the same discussions years from now.

At least since last December, Memorial Day on May 25 has been viewed as the “last deadline” for driving the legislation forward. After summer begins, lawmakers will leave Washington to campaign and will have little time to focus on crypto bills (or most other legislation). Before Congress adjourns, the House still needs to consider a bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security, while the Senate must decide whether Kevin Warsh will serve as the next Federal Reserve Chair.

The crypto industry is urgently hoping for the bill’s passage. Last week, more than 100 institutions jointly signed an open letter urging the Senate Banking Committee to hold a hearing on the bill, which would be the first step in the overall passage process. But it is unclear how close the committee is to advancing it. The issue of stablecoin yields continues to dominate the discussion, and other unresolved matters have at least not yet been resolved publicly.

Even after these issues are resolved, the House would still need to vote on the bill again. Earlier this month, French Hill, chair of the House Financial Services Committee, said that many unresolved issues related to stablecoins and DeFi sales have been addressed in the House version of the bill, and the Senate should be able to reach consensus.