US crypto regulatory clarity expected Sept. 15, regardless of CLARITY Act vote

US crypto regulatory clarity is anticipated by September 15, irrespective of the CLARITY Act's Senate vote outcome, according to Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent urged passage of the bill, warning of a "troubling signal" if it fails. Grayscale Research noted that regulatory progress will continue regardless of the act's fate.

A revised version of the CLARITY Act, posted on Senator Cynthia Lummis's website, aims to clarify regulatory requirements for "non-decentralized finance trading protocols." The bill defines such protocols as those whose functionality, operation, or rules can be materially altered by a person or coordinated group, or whose controllers can restrict users. Under the proposal, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) would develop activity-based rules for registration, conduct, disclosure, recordkeeping, and supervision, while the Treasury would establish how Bank Secrecy Act obligations apply to affected controllers. Software and distributed ledger systems would not be required to register, and participation in security councils would not, by itself, establish control.

The revised text arrived ahead of a procedural Senate vote scheduled for September 15, which requires 60 votes to advance. Despite ongoing disagreements over ethics and anti-money laundering protections, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong expressed optimism, stating the bill was "ready to get a yes vote" and that "must-have issues" had been resolved, though ethics restrictions remained a point of negotiation. The Crypto Council for Innovation CEO Ji Hun Kim called the vote a "pivotal moment" for digital assets and American leadership.