CLARITY Act Fails, but XRP and Bitcoin Stand on Solid Ground

Ripple's chief legal officer, Stuart Alderoty, pointed out that despite the Senate blocking the CLARITY Act, the legal ground for XRP has not shifted. In a federal court ruling in 2023, it was established that XRP sales on exchanges were not securities deals, but Ripple's sales to institutions did break securities law.

The same judge later found that XRP is not a security, and in March, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) listed XRP among 16 digital commodities. Alderoty emphasized this settled ground, writing on X, 'Don't forget, Ripple and XRP stand on settled ground.'

MicroStrategy made a similar case for Bitcoin, saying it has had legal and regulatory clarity in the US for years. The firm holds 845,050 BTC bought for $63.73 billion, with a cost per coin of $75,412. After the vote, Bitcoin traded near $76,206, roughly 1% above its purchase price.

The CLARITY Act failed to pass due to Democratic support collapsing from 78 in July 2025 to zero in September 2026. Representative Tom Emmer blamed Senator Kirsten Gillibrand for switching her vote after praising the industry at a panel earlier this year.