US Senate Considers Bill on New Crypto Market Rules

The CLARITY Act, which addresses cryptocurrency market regulation, failed to gather the 60 votes needed in the US Senate to advance debate. Fifty senators voted in favor of the bill, while 49 voted against it.

The CLARITY Act aims to establish unified rules for the digital asset market and defines how oversight of the sector would be divided among American regulators. Before the vote, Republicans made several changes to the bill in an effort to address concerns raised by banks and some Democrats.

One of the contentious issues concerns the crypto assets held by public officials. Under the updated version, officials would be required to sell significant holdings or transfer their assets to an independent manager. For some Democrats, these restrictions were not sufficient.

The bill also faces opposition from the banking sector. Banks are concerned that yields offered to consumers on stablecoins could drain funds from bank deposits and affect banks' ability to issue loans. Representatives of the crypto industry, meanwhile, support passage of the bill.

Source: Reuters