The US Senate failed to advance the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act in a 49-50 procedural vote on Tuesday, falling short of the 60 votes needed to proceed. Seven Democratic senators declared the outcome “a setback, but not the end” of bipartisan efforts to pass crypto legislation. Trace Finance co-founder Bernardo Brites called the failure “not a fatal one” but warned that institutional participation may remain on the sidelines longer than expected. Coinbase’s Brian Armstrong noted bipartisan discussions could continue but said the industry “cannot wait” for Congress. Ripple’s Brad Garlinghouse called for a post-mortem. Senator Cynthia Lummis sharply criticized Democrats, calling the vote “anti-consumer” and “anti-American.”
The US Senate failed to advance the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act on Tuesday after a procedural vote fell short, 49-50. The vote required 60 of 100 senators to pass the bill and allow it to move forward.
Seven Democratic senators — Kirsten Gillibrand, Angela Alsobrooks, Cory Booker, Catherine Cortez Masto, Ruben Gallego, Mark Warner, and Raphael Warnock — said in an official statement that Democrats have spent two years working to pass crypto legislation. “This week was a setback, but not the end of that important work.”
Senator Cynthia Lummis called the party “anti-consumer and pro-illicit finance, anti-ethics, anti-free enterprise, anti-worker, anti-livable-wage jobs, pro-socialism, and anti-American.” Ripple’s Brad Garlinghouse called for a post-mortem of the legislative defeat. Coinbase co-founder Brian Armstrong said bipartisan discussions could continue but added that the industry “cannot wait” for Congress anymore.
John O’Loghlen, Managing Director APAC of Coinbase, said the bill had broad bipartisan support and that “we also expect the SEC and CFTC to advance regulatory clarity through their respective rulemaking authorities.”
Trace Finance co-founder Bernardo Brites said the failure is “not a fatal one” for the industry. He argued that institutional volumes will remain on the sidelines longer, pushing out the larger wave of incumbent participation investors expect. Brites added: “Banks will still move to adopt stablecoins, and blockchain rails will still become the foundation of modern finance, clarity or no clarity.” He noted that every delay is a missed chance for the US to cement leadership in financial technology.
