Senate Pushes CLARITY Act Vote to September Amid Regulatory Uncertainty

The Senate's move to delay a vote on the CLARITY Act has left the crypto industry reeling. Despite expectations from Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott that the bill would pass before lawmakers leave for recess, it will now be pushed back until September.

This is the second time the vote has been delayed, and it comes after Democrats declined to agree to a time agreement that would have cleared a path to the floor. The proposed divestment rule, which would force the president and senior federal officials to sell stakes in digital asset companies above a certain size threshold, remains a sticking point.

The bill itself has already cleared the Senate Banking Committee with a 15-9 vote in May, but it lacks the necessary 60 votes for passage. Negotiators released merged text in July, and industry reaction was disappointed but not defeated, with the Digital Chamber and the Crypto Council for Innovation framing the delay as a setback in timing rather than direction.

The delay means that uncertainty will remain in the market for another month, with prediction market odds on the bill being signed into law this year dropping to around 15% from 30%. The regulatory question of who supervises what remains open, keeping listing decisions, custody arrangements, and token classifications in limbo for US firms.