Industry urges Senate action
What happened
- Over 100 crypto firms formally urged the U.S. Senate to advance a market-structure bill clarifying oversight and protections. - The letter asked for clearer SEC/CFTC lines, protections for non-custodial developers, and simpler disclosure rules. - If lawmakers act, token issuance and interface design could face a more unified federal standard rather than patchwork state rules. (coindesk.com).
Why it matters
More than 100 crypto firms and trade groups asked the U.S. Senate this week to move a long-delayed market-structure bill toward a committee markup. (coindesk.com) The April 20 letter was organized by The Digital Chamber and sent to the Senate Banking Committee as the industry pressed for action “as soon as the calendar allows.” Reports on the letter said the signers included exchanges, venture firms and trade associations, and that the request came after the House had already acted on its version of the bill. (coindesk.com) (gncrypto.news) The industry’s asks were specific: draw a clearer line between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, shield non-custodial software developers from being treated like financial intermediaries, and replace overlapping disclosure demands with a simpler federal framework. The same push also warned against leaving crypto companies to navigate a state-by-state patchwork. (coindesk.com) At the center of the fight is the CLARITY Act, a bill that would sort digital assets into different regulatory buckets and assign more of the spot-market rulebook to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Congress.gov lists it as H.R. 3633, the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025. (congress.gov) The House passed that bill on July 17, 2025, by a 294-134 vote, with 78 Democrats joining Republicans. Senate Republicans then released a discussion draft on July 22, 2025, saying it built on the House bill and covered the Banking Committee’s side of the framework. (clerk.house.gov) (banking.senate.gov) The Senate process has moved more slowly because the bill crosses committee lines. Banking oversees the Securities and Exchange Commission, while Agriculture oversees the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and Senate Agriculture leaders released their own bipartisan discussion draft in November 2025. (banking.senate.gov) (mwcllc.com) One of the biggest live disputes is over decentralized finance, where software lets users trade or move tokens without handing assets to a broker or exchange. Industry groups have argued that coders who publish non-custodial tools should not be regulated like firms that hold customer money. (theblock.co) (coindesk.com) Another pressure point is timing. CoinDesk reported on April 21 that Senate floor time was tightening, while other reports said Senator Thom Tillis had asked for a markup to slip into May as lawmakers kept negotiating with crypto and banking interests. (coindesk.com) (cointelegraph.com) Banking groups and some critics have pushed back on parts of the crypto agenda, especially where new rules could shift activity away from banks or weaken investor protections, while crypto advocates say delay leaves enforcement and compliance standards too murky. Public summaries of the Senate talks describe disputes over stablecoin rewards, ethics concerns and the risk of “deposit flight” from banks. (cryptotimes.io) (coindesk.com) If senators do schedule a markup, the next phase would move the fight from private drafting to public amendments. That is what the industry is asking for now: not a final vote yet, but a Senate process that finally starts. (gncrypto.news) (coindesk.com)
Key numbers
- Over 100 crypto firms formally urged the U.S.
- More than 100 crypto firms and trade groups asked the U.S.
- 3633, the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025.
- (congress.gov) The House passed that bill on July 17, 2025, by a 294-134 vote, with 78 Democrats joining Republicans.
What happens next
- CoinDesk reported on April 21 that Senate floor time was tightening, while other reports said Senator Thom Tillis had asked for a markup to slip into May as lawmakers kept negotiating with crypto and banking interests.
- (cryptotimes.io) (coindesk.com) If senators do schedule a markup, the next phase would move the fight from private drafting to public amendments.
- If lawmakers act, token issuance and interface design could face a more unified federal standard rather than patchwork state rules.
Quick answers
What happened in Industry urges Senate action?
Over 100 crypto firms formally urged the U.S. Senate to advance a market-structure bill clarifying oversight and protections. The letter asked for clearer SEC/CFTC lines, protections for non-custodial developers, and simpler disclosure rules. If lawmakers act, token issuance and interface design could face a more unified federal standard rather than patchwork state rules. (coindesk.com).
Why does Industry urges Senate action matter?
More than 100 crypto firms and trade groups asked the U.S. Senate this week to move a long-delayed market-structure bill toward a committee markup. (coindesk.com) The April 20 letter was organized by The Digital Chamber and sent to the Senate Banking Committee as the industry pressed for action “as soon as the calendar allows.” Reports on the letter said the signers included exchanges, venture firms and trade associations, and that the request came after the House had already acted on its version of the bill. (coindesk.com) (gncrypto.news) The industry’s asks were specific: draw a clearer line between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, shield non-custodial software developers from being treated like financial intermediaries, and replace overlapping disclosure demands with a simpler federal framework. The same push also warned against leaving crypto companies to navigate a state-by-state patchwork. (coindesk.com) At the center of the fight is the CLARITY Act, a bill that would sort digital assets into different regulatory buckets and assign more of the spot-market rulebook to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Congress.gov lists it as H.R. 3633, the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025. (congress.gov) The House passed that bill on July 17, 2025, by a 294-134 vote, with 78 Democrats joining Republicans. Senate Republicans then released a discussion draft on July 22, 2025, saying it built on the House bill and covered the Banking Committee’s side of the framework. (clerk.house.gov) (banking.senate.gov) The Senate process has moved more slowly because the bill crosses committee lines. Banking oversees the Securities and Exchange Commission, while Agriculture oversees the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and Senate Agriculture leaders released their own bipartisan discussion draft in November 2025. (banking.senate.gov) (mwcllc.com) One of the biggest live disputes is over decentralized finance, where software lets users trade or move tokens without handing assets to a broker or exchange. Industry groups have argued that coders who publish non-custodial tools should not be regulated like firms that hold customer money. (theblock.co) (coindesk.com) Another pressure point is timing. CoinDesk reported on April 21 that Senate floor time was tightening, while other reports said Senator Thom Tillis had asked for a markup to slip into May as lawmakers kept negotiating with crypto and banking interests. (coindesk.com) (cointelegraph.com) Banking groups and some critics have pushed back on parts of the crypto agenda, especially where new rules could shift activity away from banks or weaken investor protections, while crypto advocates say delay leaves enforcement and compliance standards too murky. Public summaries of the Senate talks describe disputes over stablecoin rewards, ethics concerns and the risk of “deposit flight” from banks. (cryptotimes.io) (coindesk.com) If senators do schedule a markup, the next phase would move the fight from private drafting to public amendments. That is what the industry is asking for now: not a final vote yet, but a Senate process that finally starts. (gncrypto.news) (coindesk.com)
