The Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act was expected to pass with votes strictly along party lines. However, a late agreement reached by senators during a private meeting of the Senate Banking Committee gained Democratic backing, allowing the bill to move forward for a full Senate vote.
The bill passed the committee on May 14 by a vote of 15 to 9. Senators Angela Alsobrooks and Ruben Gallego voted with all the Republican members. Despite late-night discussions, Republicans and Democrats hadn’t reached a complete agreement beforehand.
A recent report from Crypto in America indicated that senators and their staff were still in discussions as the committee began its review of the bill. About ten minutes into the hearing, a small group from both parties met privately to resolve the final details.
Senators Thom Tillis and Cynthia Lummis, along with Representatives Alsobrooks and Gallego, were working to change some proposed additions to a bill. They hoped these changes would gain support from at least a few Democrats.
Amendment changes opened the door to bipartisan support
The agreement centered on five changes proposed by Lummis. A key adjustment removed a connection between Section 301 of the bill and the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act, which aimed to confirm that software developers who don’t hold customer funds aren’t considered money transmitters.
Changes were also made to clarify banks’ ability to work with digital assets, including tokenization, and to address insider trading related to these assets. The revisions also ensured existing state laws protecting consumers would still apply. After an agreement was reached, committee staff quickly updated and distributed the amended text to senators during the hearing itself.
Gallego and Alsobrooks cast key votes
The changes made to the bill gained the support of Senators Gallego and Alsobrooks, giving it the bipartisan support its advocates wanted. However, both senators clarified that their support in committee doesn’t guarantee they’ll vote for the bill when it comes before the full Senate.
Gallego stated that legislators still had a few key details to work out, especially rules to stop elected officials from personally benefiting from cryptocurrency investments while holding office. Alsobrooks agreed, saying the bill would need further revisions before she could vote in favor of it.
Ethics provisions remain unresolved
One of the biggest disagreements during the discussions centered on rules to prevent conflicts of interest. Democrats, particularly Senator Elizabeth Warren, have been advocating for stricter rules that would cover the president, members of Congress, and top government officials.
The matter is now more important due to President Donald Trump’s connections to cryptocurrency businesses, such as World Liberty Financial. After the vote, Gallego stated that talks about the ethical guidelines were nearly finished, indicating a deal was almost reached.
What comes next
With the Senate Banking Committee’s approval, the CLARITY Act now moves to the full Senate. There, senators will work to combine it with a similar bill being created by the Senate Agriculture Committee.
This legislation would create rules for how digital assets are bought and sold, and it would clearly define which agency – the SEC or the Commodity Futures Trading Commission – has authority over different parts of the market.
This represents a major step forward for crypto regulation in Congress, though lawmakers still need to resolve issues related to ethics, banking regulations, and law enforcement before a final vote can take place.
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2026-05-16 20:39