Even as Washington remains hobbled by a partial government shutdown, momentum for U.S. crypto market structure legislation is quietly reaching new heights.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong says the industry is “90%” of the way there, describing unprecedented bipartisan cooperation among senators working to finalize the long-awaited regulatory framework for digital assets.
Armstrong, who spent this week meeting with both Senate Democrats and Republicans, said the last few sticking points of the CLARITY Act — including rules for decentralized finance (DeFi) and stablecoin rewards — are close to being resolved.
“Both sides are working hard to figure out the final 10%, and we’re getting close,” he said in a social media post. “We’re bullish on getting a bill passed by year-end, and hopeful it’s out of Committee by Thanksgiving.”
The Coinbase chief’s optimism comes amid a surge of engagement between lawmakers and crypto executives, marking one of the most serious bipartisan pushes to bring clarity to digital asset regulation since Congress first began debating the issue years ago.
Bipartisan crypto breakthrough in July
The legislation at the center of these discussions — the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (CLARITY Act) — passed the House of Representatives in July with a strong bipartisan majority of 294–137.
The bill now sits before the Senate Banking Committee, chaired by Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), with hopes it could advance to the Senate floor before the end of the year.
In a CNBC interview on Wednesday, Armstrong described “very productive” meetings with senators from both parties, calling the level of collaboration a positive sign for the U.S. crypto industry.
According to multiple people familiar with the meetings, senior lawmakers including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), and Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) attended or participated in discussions with Armstrong and other crypto leaders such as Kraken co-CEO David Ripley, Uniswap Labs founder Hayden Adams, and Chainlink Labs’ Sergey Nazarov.
The CLARITY Act seeks to end years of regulatory ambiguity by clearly distinguishing which digital assets qualify as securities under the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and which fall under the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Under the bill’s framework, sufficiently decentralized networks would fall under CFTC oversight, while tokens with more centralized control or that function as investment contracts would remain under SEC jurisdiction.
The legislation also introduces clearer rules for decentralized finance, secondary trading markets, and custody services — areas where the lack of uniform federal guidance has long frustrated both innovators and investors.
DeFi and stablecoin legislation
Still, the final 10% of negotiations may prove the toughest. One of the key unresolved questions is how to regulate decentralized finance platforms.
Armstrong has urged lawmakers to focus oversight on decentralized intermediaries — such as interfaces or aggregators — rather than attempting to regulate open-source protocols themselves.
Another area of tension involves stablecoin rewards, which Armstrong says the banking lobby is working to eliminate. Coinbase and other industry advocates argue that consumers should be able to earn yield on regulated stablecoin holdings, similar to how traditional savings accounts pay interest.
These debates underscore the competing visions within Congress: Democrats remain focused on preventing illicit finance and ensuring consumer protection, while Republicans emphasize innovation and competitiveness.
Despite the bipartisan goodwill, the timing remains precarious. The ongoing government shutdown has slowed committee work and pushed back the formal markup of the bill. Some lawmakers, including Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA), have expressed skepticism that the committee is ready to move forward, citing unanswered questions about regulatory authority and industry influence.
Still, supporters say the momentum is undeniable. Sen. Lummis, who has long championed digital asset legislation, recently told attendees at the SALT Wyoming Blockchain Symposium that she expects the market structure bill to reach the president’s desk “before the end of the year — hopefully before Thanksgiving.”
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