The US CLARITY Act — a closely watched bill designed to provide clearer regulatory guardrails for the American crypto industry — could pass Congress within weeks, according to crypto-friendly US Senator Bernie Moreno.
“Hopefully by April,” Moreno told CNBC during an interview on Wednesday at US President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago property in Florida.
Brian Armstrong, CEO of Coinbase, joined Moreno for the interview, explaining that representatives from the crypto sector, the banking industry and members of Congress were gathered at the World Liberty Financial (WLF) crypto forum to work toward a market structure agreement.
“A path forward” in sight
“One of the big issues that did come up in the past was this idea of stablecoins on rewards,” Armstrong said, referring to concerns from the banking industry that offering yield on stablecoins could siphon deposits and interest income away from traditional banks.
Although Armstrong previously took issue with aspects of the draft legislation and withdrew his support for the CLARITY Act in January, he said discussions have since progressed.
“There is now a path forward, where we can get a win-win-win outcome here,” he said.
“A win for the crypto industry, a win for the banks, and a win for the American consumer to get President Trump’s crypto agenda through to the finish line, so we can make America the crypto capital of the world,” said Brian Armstrong.
Armstrong explained that Coinbase had previously withheld support for the US CLARITY Act because the draft legislation included provisions banning interest-bearing stablecoins and designated the US Securities and Exchange Commission as the primary regulator of the crypto industry. The White House was reportedly disappointed by Coinbase’s decision, characterizing the withdrawal as a “unilateral” move that caught administration officials off guard.
Sen. Bernie Moreno acknowledged that negotiations had stalled over the issue of stablecoin rewards, which he said “shouldn’t be part of this equation.”
On Polymarket, the odds of the US CLARITY Act passing in 2026 briefly climbed to 90% on Wednesday before easing to 72% at the time of publication.
Moreno dismisses midterm concerns
Moreno also brushed aside concerns that a potential Democratic takeover of Congress in the midterm elections could derail the bill.
“The House isn’t going to go Democrat, and neither is the Senate,” he said, adding that voters were frustrated with open borders, elevated inflation and what he described as an overextended federal government.
Earlier, on Dec. 19, White House crypto and AI czar David Sacks expressed strong confidence that the legislation would advance swiftly.
“We are closer than ever to passing the landmark crypto market structure legislation that President Trump has called for. We look forward to finishing the job in January,” Sacks said at the time.
