CoinDesk
The Senate Banking Committee released the full text of the Clarity Act just after midnight on Tuesday, setting up a Thursday committee hearing and vote on the most consequential U.S. crypto market-structure bill to date. The legislation would formally insert digital assets into the existing financial regulatory perimeter, mapping out which agency oversees which activity and codifying long-running industry asks on stablecoins and decentralized finance.
The 78-page draft is light on surprises for a crypto industry that has had months of closed-door access, but it still carries the two fights that have defined the negotiation. On stablecoin yield, the text reflects the compromise committee negotiators settled on, though the American Bankers Association spent the weekend mobilizing members to push for tighter limits — warning that yield-bearing stablecoins could siphon insured deposits and mortgage funding. On DeFi, the bill mirrors the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act, shielding non-custodial software developers from money-transmitter treatment, a posture the DeFi Education Fund endorsed as it pledged to flag any floor amendments that erode the protection.
Why it matters
A committee approval would end a years-long stalemate over how the U.S. regulates crypto at the federal level, and would tee up a merge with the parallel Senate Agriculture Committee version before a full floor vote requiring 60 senators. The White House is publicly targeting a July 4 finish; Senator Kirsten Gillibrand predicted the first week of August. Either way, the bill still has to absorb a conflict-of-interest provision that sits outside the banking panel's jurisdiction but that Democrats — led by Gillibrand — have made a hard precondition for final passage. White House crypto adviser Patrick Witt has framed the demand as a non-starter when it singles out a specific officeholder, leaving the ethics language as the bill's most likely break point.
Market impact
For stablecoin issuers, the yield language is the binding constraint: bank lobby framing this as a deposit-substitution threat will keep pressure on permissible reward structures even after committee passage.
Frequently asked questions
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What does the Clarity Act do?
It is the Senate Banking Committee's crypto market-structure bill, formally mapping digital assets into the existing U.S. financial regulatory perimeter and codifying rules on stablecoin yield and non-custodial DeFi developers.
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When does the committee vote on the Clarity Act?
The Senate Banking Committee is set to vote on the bill at a Thursday hearing after the text was released just after midnight on Tuesday.
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Why are U.S. banks pushing back on the stablecoin yield provisions?
The American Bankers Association argues yield-bearing stablecoins could substitute for insured deposits and drain funding for mortgages, and spent the weekend lobbying members to tighten the language before the committee vote.
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How does the bill treat DeFi developers?
The text mirrors the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act, shielding non-custodial software developers from being classified as money transmitters, a posture the DeFi Education Fund endorsed while pledging to track amendments.
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What is the biggest remaining obstacle to final passage?
A conflict-of-interest provision outside the banking panel's jurisdiction that Democrats, led by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, have made a hard precondition for final passage — and that the White House has framed as a non-starter when it singles out a specific officeholder.
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