The Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act faces a pivotal Senate cloture vote on September 15 after House passage and Senate committee action. The vote will determine whether debate proceeds, requiring 60 votes. Senate Republicans say revised legislation includes more than 115 Democratic-backed measures, new fraud provisions, DeFi changes, and credit union authority. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has urged a “yes” vote. The bill would divide SEC and CFTC jurisdiction, define ancillary assets, set decentralization tests for DeFi, and create federal registration for crypto exchanges, brokers, and dealers.
The CLARITY Act is scheduled for a critical Senate test on September 15. Senate Majority Leader John Thune filed cloture before the August recess, setting the vote as the next major hurdle.
The House passed H.R. 3633 by a vote of 294-134 in July 2025, and the Senate Banking Committee advanced its version 15-9 in May 2026. Lawmakers later merged work from the Banking and Agricultural committees.
The vote is not final passage. Senators will decide whether to proceed with debate, and cloture requires 60 votes, meaning Republicans need Democratic or independent support.
Senate Republicans released further revisions after recess negotiations. They said the bill includes more than 115 Democratic “wins,” with new fraud measures, changes for certain DeFi platforms, and clear crypto authority for credit unions.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong urged a “yes” vote, saying the company’s previous must-have concerns have been resolved. Failure to reach 60 votes could weaken momentum behind Congress’s most advanced attempt at a comprehensive crypto market-structure framework.
The bill addresses three core areas. It preserves SEC authority over securities and fundraising transactions while expanding CFTC authority over spot digital-commodity markets and intermediaries.
The text introduces “ancillary assets,” network tokens whose value may depend on entrepreneurial or managerial efforts but are treated as commodities with specific disclosures. Those obligations can end when relevant managerial efforts cease.
The proposal targets non-decentralized DeFi protocols, where identifiable parties retain meaningful control, with CFTC registration requirements. It also protects software developers and network participants limited to software development or validation, and states federal agencies generally cannot stop individuals from using self-hosted wallets.
The CLARITY Act would bring digital-commodity exchanges, brokers, and dealers into a defined federal registration and supervision regime. It includes customer protection and market integrity requirements, and applies Bank Secrecy Act obligations to relevant intermediaries.
This means anti-money-laundering programs, customer identification, suspicious activity reporting, and sanctions compliance would become explicit federal requirements. The legislation also adds disclosures and protections addressing insider abuse, fraud, and treatment of customer assets.
