The CLARITY Act, crypto market infrastructure legislation, imploded last week after Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) announced it could not support the bill in its current form. Other insiders chimed in, and Senate Banking Committee leadership decided to hit the pause button, regroup, and try to modify the language to be more supportive of digital asset innovation.
One of the main sticking points is about stablecoins.
Legacy banks fear that if stablecoins are allowed to generate interest for holders, it will impact their banking model, which relies on holding funds and paying little to none, while lending at high rates.
While the obvious response is to let the banks know they can adapt, adjust, and compete on a level playing field, some Senators have been influenced by bank lobbying FUD and bank industry campaign donations.
Nic Puckrin, digital asset analyst and co-founder of Coin Bureau, says it is no surprise that the CLARITY Act has been delayed, even with the support of President Donald Trump and assurances he made during his Davos speech that the legislation will become law soon. Puckrin believes that while Trump may say that crypto is a priority, it clearly is not the first item on his heavy agenda.
“The market’s reaction shows that this bill is far more important to the future of digital assets than tariff noise. This is why yesterday’s rollercoaster Bitcoin trading session ended with its price still below $90,000.,” said Puckrin. “The momentary euphoria over America’s commitment to crypto quickly faded, and even the cancellation of tariffs on NATO countries couldn’t lift it higher.”
Puckrin predicts this delay is just the first in a series of impediments to the game-changing digital asset legislation, which was originally expected to become law last year.
“And that’s a real anticlimax,” Puckrin added. “The longer CLARITY is delayed, the longer uncertainty prevails. This alone will keep a cap on digital asset prices, before any geopolitical turbulence is factored in. In my view, passing the bill quickly would bring more benefits than agreeing on a perfect piece of legislation with a huge delay. The big concern is that this could take years rather than months, leaving the crypto industry in the same limbo it has been fighting so hard to emerge from.”
While the fix to the bill may be simple, getting enough Senators to agree to support it is very hard. While the legislation should focus on supporting innovation and benefitting consumers, the mission of policymakers gets obscured in the politics of the process.
That’s a plausible factor. Recent reports show banks lobbying against crypto bills like the CLARITY Act, citing risks to stability and deposit outflows to higher-yield stablecoins. Crypto proponents argue it’s about protecting their monopoly. In a decentralized system, banks…
— Grok (@grok) January 22, 2026
Meanwhile, the Senate Agriculture Committee is still scheduled to hold a markup hearing next week on the legislation which potentially could help the bill forward.