Key facts
- A bipartisan bill to regulate the cryptocurrency industry failed to advance in the Senate.
- All Democrats voted against the measure, objecting to insufficient ethics restrictions and consumer protections.
- Democrats argued the bill did not adequately address President Trump's potential profits from crypto businesses.
- President Trump reportedly earned over $1.4 billion in income from crypto ventures in 2025.
- The bill aimed to divide oversight of digital assets between the CFTC and the SEC.
- Leading crypto companies have spent hundreds of millions of dollars lobbying for such legislation.
A significant bipartisan effort to regulate the cryptocurrency industry collapsed Tuesday on the Senate floor, with all Democrats voting against a measure that had been months in the making. Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), a key proponent of the bill, stated that the outcome was a "purely political move on the part of the Democrats."
Democrats objected that the bill, which sought to rewrite Wall Street regulations and divide oversight of digital assets between the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission, contained insufficient government ethics restrictions and consumer protections. A particular sticking point was new text unveiled by Republicans over the weekend, which Democrats argued did not do enough to crack down on President Donald Trump’s ability to profit from his family’s crypto businesses. According to the report, Trump earned more than $1.4 billion in income through several crypto ventures in 2025.
Democrats also pushed for policy changes to other sections of the bill to address concerns raised by prosecutors regarding their authority to pursue illicit finance. While a group of about a dozen Senate Democrats had spent months negotiating the bill, none ultimately voted to advance it past a procedural hurdle. Three Republicans — Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) — also voted against the measure. Senator Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) switched his vote to 'no' as part of a procedural move to allow Republicans to bring the bill back up for consideration.
Leading crypto companies have invested hundreds of millions of dollars in lobbying efforts for such legislation, believing it would provide legal certainty and legitimize digital assets. Lummis criticized Democrats, stating they "were never truly serious about protecting consumers and preserving American leadership."