Bessent pushes Senate for CLARITY Act vote before August recess

Bessent’s call to action on X targets Senate Majority Leader John Thune, urging him to bring the bill to the floor before Washington shuts down next week. The Treasury secretary contends that Democrats are stalling due to concerns over opposition from Senator Elizabeth Warren, characterizing the legislative delay as a surrender of global industry dominance. While the House passed its version of the bill in July 2025 with 78 Democratic votes, the Senate remains divided by intense negotiations over ethics enforcement and the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act (BRCA).

Two primary hurdles persist. First, disagreement over whether the Department of Justice should hold sole authority for ethics enforcement—a power some Democrats insist should be shared with state attorneys general. Second, the BRCA provision, which aims to define when non-custodial software developers must register as money transmitters. While Bessent insists this simply codifies existing Treasury policy, some prosecutors fear broad exemptions could hamper their ability to pursue illicit actors. Republican Senator Thom Tillis is currently finalizing a bipartisan ethics proposal intended to secure the support of at least seven Democrats, the minimum required to clear the chamber’s 60-vote threshold.

Skepticism remains high among market participants. Polymarket traders have downgraded the probability of the bill becoming law in 2026 to roughly 26%, a sharp decline from the 82% confidence seen in February. Should the legislation fail to advance before the recess, the industry will continue to operate under a fragmented landscape of state regulations and agency-led enforcement, leaving firms without a clear federal framework for digital-asset oversight.