US Senate's Digital Asset CLARITY Act Moves Closer to Final Vote

The US Senate is pushing forward with the Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act, with a committee markup now targeted for the second half of April. Senator Cynthia Lummis has indicated that final legislative text could be released within days, suggesting negotiations are nearing their conclusion — though the bill looks significantly different from its earlier versions.

One of the most debated issues — stablecoin yield — has finally been resolved. The updated compromise bans passive yield on stablecoin balances, a concession that satisfies banking sector demands. In return, the bill is expected to permit limited, activity-based rewards linked to payments or platform activity. This represents a notable departure from earlier drafts that left open the possibility of broader yield distribution. While crypto firms lobbied hard to keep yield as a user incentive, that position was ultimately traded away to build bipartisan support.

On the other hand, the bill introduces stronger protections for the decentralized finance sector. Revised language is expected to explicitly exclude developers and non-custodial protocols from being classified as financial intermediaries, relieving concerns that earlier versions could have subjected software builders to bank-style compliance requirements.

The bill's foundational regulatory framework remains unchanged. It continues to divide oversight authority between the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission, with the CFTC taking jurisdiction over digital commodities while the SEC retains control over investment contract assets.

Political urgency is also a driving factor. Senator Bernie Moreno has cautioned that failure to pass the bill before May could push broader cryptocurrency legislation past the 2026 midterm cycle, effectively delaying crypto regulation by years.

The CLARITY Act represents a carefully balanced compromise — one that trades some industry-favored provisions for the regulatory certainty the digital asset market has long been waiting for.