What should be the key focus areas following the milestone moments in the CLARITY Act?

Author: Blockchain Knight; Source: X, @Knight_in_Block

Last night, the U.S. Senate Banking Committee passed the “CLARITY Act” with a vote of 15 in favor and 9 against.

Following the news, Bitcoin quickly surged past $82k, with the market placing a trust vote in this milestone with real money.

This 309-page bill is not only the most comprehensive crypto regulatory framework in the United States to date but also marks the federal level’s determination to end regulatory chaos and embrace the digital asset era.

The bill’s passage ends a ten-year jurisdictional dispute between the SEC and CFTC.

The new regulations clearly delineate boundaries, granting the CFTC broad regulatory authority over the spot cryptocurrency market, while the SEC retains oversight over digital asset securities and the initial issuance of investment contracts.

The White House’s Digital Asset Advisory Committee Executive Director stated that the bill is a necessary policy for the U.S. to maintain its leadership in global financial markets, with consumer protection and anti-illegal finance provisions being the foundation.

The short-term market boost and long-term impact are equally significant. Besides Bitcoin’s rally, Coinbase’s stock price soared over 9% on the same day.

The core reason is that legislators reached a clever compromise on stablecoin rewards: explicitly banning platforms from paying passive interest similar to deposits on idle stablecoins, alleviating concerns from traditional bankers led by the American Bankers Association about deposit outflows.

However, at the same time, the bill allows activity-based rewards linked to transactions such as Gas fee payments and utility bill payments, preserving legal business space for companies like Coinbase and Circle in their stablecoin operations.

Coinbase CEO praised that this will make the U.S. financial system faster, cheaper, and more convenient.

Despite the strong momentum, the bill still faces a series of tough challenges before becoming law.

First is the severe timing and procedural challenge. Supporters hope President Trump can sign the bill before July 4, but the schedule is extremely tight. Lawmakers are about to enter the Memorial Day recess starting May 21, and the August congressional recess is also approaching.

The bill must first be coordinated and merged with the version introduced by the Senate Agriculture Committee in January, then submitted to the full Senate, requiring at least 60 votes to advance legislation.
Subsequently, it must be harmonized with the House’s corresponding bill (HR 3633), passed by the House in July 2025, and then voted on again by the House before finally being submitted to the President.

Second is the persistent political divisions. Progressive senators fiercely criticized the bill for “exacerbating conflicts of interest brought by Trump and his family’s crypto ventures,” although an amendment related to this was rejected in committee votes, similar voices may still pose obstacles in the full chamber vote.

Additionally, details such as whether developer protections are weakened and whether stablecoin provisions still contain loopholes for disguised interest arbitrage will continue to be focal points of debate.

Galaxy Digital provided a cautiously optimistic assessment, estimating a 55% chance that the bill will become law by 2026.

The successful passage of the CLARITY bill through the committee marks a key breakthrough for the crypto industry’s transition from wild growth to compliance and maturity.

In the coming months, the market will closely watch the progress of version coordination and full votes in both the Senate and House.