The proposed CLARITY Act may be voted on by the Senate in the coming days and then signed by Donald Trump.
Cryptocurrencies Near a Breakthrough in the U.S.
Tim Scott, U.S. Senator and Chair of the Senate Banking Committee, announced on Friday that the committee would deepen the bill during a Thursday meeting, May 14.
We wrote more about this in the article: Bitcoin price (BTC/USD, BTC/PLN) before the next dip? Investors turn their attention to the U.S. Senate
For the crypto market this is very important information, as the digital asset industry has long pressed authorities to enact rules that allow it to operate safely in the U.S.
The goal is to enable them to create innovative, blockchain‑based tools and platforms without the risk of penalties.
This is not a theoretical threat, as the SEC operated in this way under Gary Gensler.
The commission tried to “make law by enforcing it.” At least that’s how critics described it. In practice, officials were trying to control the crypto market without preparing new, appropriate regulations for it.
The SEC attempted to fulfill its mandate based on already existing regulations that were created before the first blockchain launched. In other words, it believed that control over a new industry could be exercised using rules that were created decades ago.
The CLARITY Act could therefore be a breakthrough, potentially becoming the first U.S. law that regulates the crypto market. In practice, the package of rules could define when and which tokens are securities or commodities. Depending on that, oversight would be exercised either by the SEC (the Polish KNF equivalent) or the CFTC (the commodity regulator).
The bill also contains provisions aimed at resolving the contentious dispute between crypto firms and the banking sector. Previously, the latter wanted to prohibit exchanges from paying customers interest on stablecoins held there. The blockchain industry did not want to agree to this.
Ultimately, rewards for customers for “idle dollar‑backed assets” would be banned, mainly because of their similarity to bank deposits.
Bankers also argue that passing a rule guaranteeing “rewards” would lead to capital flight from the insured banking system, potentially threatening financial stability.
It’s also worth adding what the law will change for investors. If it “passes” in its current form, it will make it harder to earn through “idle” stablecoins. That is a loss of potential profits.
In the long term, regulations could help the industry by increasing market transparency and facilitating innovative ventures. They will also increase certainty regarding the nature of cryptocurrencies.
They will answer the question of which digital assets are commodities and which are securities. This could make it easier for large entities to invest, potentially increasing demand for specific assets.
The situation remains uncertain. The industry hopes the bill will be passed in the coming months, before the supplementary elections in November, which could see Democrats take control of the House of Representatives.
Many Democratic congressmen oppose the bill, arguing that it lacks anti‑money‑laundering provisions and should better prevent political officials from profiting from crypto ventures.
In this last case, it concerns Donald Trump, who issued his own memecoin and is linked to the crypto firm World Liberty Financial.
So far, the House of Representatives adopted its version of the bill. This happened in July last year. Now the Senate must do it, and then the president must sign the final version.
Read also: Bitcoin price before the launch or crash? Expert: “Cryptocurrency started reacting unusually.” Here’s how ETH/USD is doing
Also see: Bitcoin price fell 50% from ATH. Expert warns. “The real gamechanger” could change BTC/USD’s direction?
Bitcoin price heads south
Bitcoin’s price again broke the 80,000 USD level, reaching 80,786 USD.
BTC price fell on Monday, May 11 by 1.7%.
Chart. Bitcoin price (BTC/USD)
Source: Trading Economics.
Ethereum price is currently at 2331 USD after a drop of 1,66%.
Chart. Ethereum price (ETH/USD)
Source: Trading Economics.
Also see: Bitcoin price awaiting a crash of about 25k USD? Expert: “Bitcoin could dive even near 45k USD.” What next for ETH?
Source: Reuters.
