Overview
- CFTC Chair Mike Selig told his Innovation Advisory Committee this week that he has directed staff to draft market‑structure rules and developer protections using the agency’s existing authority after saying the CFTC will act if the CLARITY Act stalls.
- The Senate scheduled a cloture vote on the Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act for September 15, a procedural test that needs 60 votes to advance the bill toward a floor debate.
- The SEC has proposed a separate package called Regulation Crypto Assets that would offer tailored fundraising exemptions and a conditional safe harbor for some tokens, giving firms an alternate path to regulatory clarity.
- Industry leaders including Coinbase’s Brian Armstrong and Ripple’s Brad Garlinghouse are publicly pressing for either congressional action or rapid agency rulemaking and say clarity is essential to keep firms operating in the U.S.
- Agency rulemaking could produce faster rules for trading platforms and derivatives but would be narrower than legislation and faces immediate legal risks, including existing court challenges to CFTC approvals and potential state enforcement suits.