U.S. senators introduced an updated version of the CLARITY Act, a bill designed to establish a regulatory framework for digital assets in the United States. However, despite months of negotiations and significant revisions, the latest version continues to generate disagreements among both lawmakers and crypto industry participants.
Senator Tim Scott, Chair of the Senate Banking Committee, together with Senators Cynthia Lummis and Thom Tillis, published the revised text of the CLARITY Act aimed at regulating the U.S. digital asset market. The document was prepared after nearly a year of bipartisan negotiations and consultations with regulators, banks, law enforcement agencies, and representatives of the crypto industry.
The updated CLARITY Act seeks to establish a comprehensive regulatory framework for the crypto market in the United States, clarify the responsibilities of regulators, and strengthen investor protection and anti-illicit finance measures. According to the published text, the revised bill exceeds 300 pages and includes several key provisions:
- clear separation of regulatory authority: the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) would oversee spot markets for digital commodities, while the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) would retain authority over tokens classified as securities;
- creation of a separate registration and regulatory regime for crypto exchanges, brokers, dealers, and custodial services;
- introduction of a new “digital commodities” category for tokens tied to blockchain functionality;
- mandatory disclosure requirements for token issuers, including information on project structure, asset distribution, and investor risks;
- restrictions on insider activity and additional anti-market manipulation measures;
- protections for open-source software developers and decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols, provided they don’t control user funds;
- mandatory KYC and AML procedures for centralized digital asset market participants;
- a ban on interest-bearing stablecoins similar to bank deposits, while allowing certain forms of transaction-based rewards;
- additional studies on risks associated with DeFi protocols, crypto mixers, cybersecurity, and the use of digital assets by foreign states.
According to Tim Scott, the bill is intended to provide regulatory clarity for market participants while strengthening oversight of illicit activity involving digital assets. Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis stated that work on the bill lasted nearly a year and resulted from difficult negotiations between Republicans and Democrats. North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis described the updated version as a compromise solution that would allow the crypto industry to continue developing within the United States.
At the same time, the revised legislation still doesn’t satisfy Democratic lawmakers, who insist that ethics provisions be included in the bill. In particular, Democrats have raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest related to Donald Trump and affiliated entities actively participating in the crypto industry.
According to Politico, some Democrats are prepared to withdraw support for the legislation unless ethics restrictions are added during the Senate Banking Committee review stage. Senator Ruben Gallego and other negotiators argue that conflict-of-interest provisions should be embedded directly into the bill rather than introduced later through amendments. Republicans, meanwhile, maintain that ethics issues fall outside the Banking Committee’s jurisdiction.
The progress of the CLARITY Act through the Senate is also being complicated not only by disputes over ethics rules and concerns about potential benefits to Trump-affiliated entities, but also by deep disagreements between the banking sector and crypto industry representatives. The central point of conflict involves stablecoin regulations and restrictions on yield-generating products. More details on the nature of this conflict and possible compromise solutions are available in CP Media’s op-ep.
While the CLARITY Act faced delays in Congress, the heads of the CFTC and SEC already agreed on the division of supervisory responsibilities. SEC Chair Paul Atkins also clarified the legislative status of cryptocurrencies, explaining which categories of digital assets wouldn’t fall under securities laws and under what conditions.
