The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, a bill aimed at providing long-awaited regulatory clarity for the U.S. crypto industry, is set to move to Senate consideration next week, according to Senator Tim Scott.
“Next Thursday, we’ll have a vote on market structure,” Scott told Breitbart News on Tuesday. “It’s important for us to get on the record and vote.”
Scott said lawmakers have spent more than six months refining the legislation. “We have worked tirelessly for the last six-plus months making sure that we had multiple drafts available to every member of the committee,” he said.
His comments echo remarks made in December by White House AI and crypto czar David Sacks, who said the landmark bill—designed to establish a comprehensive framework for U.S. crypto market structure—was expected to head to a Senate markup in January.
The House of Representatives passed the legislation in July 2025. If the Senate approves the bill without amendments, it would not need to return to the House and would advance directly to President Donald Trump for final approval.
Industry remains divided
Despite the momentum, the CLARITY Act continues to face scrutiny from within the crypto industry. Since its introduction in the House in May 2025, executives and legal experts have debated its potential impact.
MetaLeX founder and crypto lawyer Gabriel Shapiro said the U.S. is “probably going to get a crypto market structure bill,” but cautioned that concerns around illicit finance remain, though “some deal” could still be reached.
Others are more skeptical about swift passage. Galaxy Digital’s head of research, Alex Thorn, said in a post on X that after reviewing materials from a bipartisan Senate meeting on Tuesday, it remains “unclear if the two sides can come together,” noting that several key issues are still unresolved.
Thorn noted that Democrats are still pressing for several amendments to the legislation, including measures that would require DeFi front-end interfaces to comply with sanctions by blocking illegal transactions. Another proposal would grant the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) expanded “special measures” authority to act against entities involved in illicit activity.
Not everyone views those demands as excessive. Castle Island Ventures founding partner Nic Carter said the Democrats’ requests are “actually pretty reasonable.”
Market volatility tied to regulatory uncertainty
Some industry participants argue that delays in passing the CLARITY Act may be contributing to recent volatility in the crypto market.
Crypto investment firm CoinShares attributed $952 million in outflows from crypto investment products in the week ending Dec. 19 to delays surrounding the legislation, pointing to prolonged “regulatory uncertainty” as a potential catalyst.
Coinbase Institutional head of strategy John D’Agostino echoed that view in an interview with CNBC on Friday, saying he understands “why this is taking longer.”
“It’s the kind of bill that is, quite frankly, more foundational for the growth of crypto—or any real asset class,” D’Agostino said.
