The future of the CLARITY Act, which aims to regulate the cryptocurrency market in the US, may depend on the Trump administration’s response to the new bipartisan ethics proposal.
According to cryptocurrency journalist Eleanor Terrett, the Trump administration is considering a counter-proposal drafted by Republican Senator Thom Tillis and Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego. This proposal would authorize state attorneys general to prosecute federal officials if the Justice Department fails to enforce ethics and conflict-of-interest rules.
The new proposal aims to address Democrats’ concerns that enforcing ethics clauses directly through the Justice Department, which is under the Trump administration, will not provide sufficient safeguards. A previous draft supported by the White House had drawn criticism for leaving enforcement authority with the Justice Department and for restrictions to expire in January 2029.
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According to Terrett, the White House is expected to evaluate the proposal over the weekend. If the parties reach an agreement on the ethical provisions, the Senate vote on the CLARITY Act could proceed. However, the bill needs the support of 60 senators to pass the procedural vote, and currently, the necessary support has not yet been secured.
The bill, which passed the Senate Banking Committee with a 15-9 vote, aims to define the limits of SEC and CFTC authority over crypto assets and create a comprehensive market structure for the sector. The bill also includes settlement provisions regarding stablecoin yields and some legal protections for software developers who do not offer custody services.
The compromise reached in stablecoin regulation restricts interest-like payments based solely on holding tokens, while allowing rewards linked to transactions, payments, loyalty programs, or platform usage. This attempts to strike a balance between banks’ concerns about deposit outflows and crypto companies’ demands to maintain their reward programs.
If agreement on ethical provisions cannot be reached, the CLARITY Act’s progress in the Senate could be halted again, and regulatory uncertainty regarding stablecoin rewards and the implementation of the GENIUS Act provisions could persist.
*This is not investment advice.
