Story perspectives

Thune Files Cloture, Pushes Crypto Clarity Bill to Senate Vote

8/9/2026

Summary

Thune Files Cloture

Senate Majority Leader John Thune filed a cloture motion on August 8, 2026, moving the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act toward a September 15, 2026 vote.
The House approved the bill 294-134 on July 17, 2025.
Senate leaders say the measure stays on the September agenda, though it needs 60 votes that Republicans lack.
Lawmakers remain split over stablecoin-reward rules and ethics provisions, with banks opposing the former and Democrats seeking stricter conflict limits.
Polymarket rates the act’s 2026 passage chance at 16% while Senator Bernie Moreno says negotiations have ended.

Summary

Crypto Industry Backs

Industry groups spent over $119 million backing pro-crypto candidates in the 2024 election to aid the Clarity Act.
President Donald Trump reported $1.4 billion in crypto-related income last year, which Democrats label a conflict-of-interest.
Major banks lobbied to remove language allowing crypto firms to offer stablecoin rewards for deposits, fearing loss of business.
Crypto firms say the act’s clear securities-versus-commodities definition will lower compliance costs and spur institutional adoption.

History

Historical Context

FinCEN’s March 20 2013 guidance classified cryptocurrency exchanges and administrators as money-services businesses, requiring registration under the Bank Secrecy Act. That rule, built on a 2011 definition expansion, set the federal baseline that now underpins the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, which Senate leader John Thune is pushing through a divided Congress. In 2021 FinCEN logged 1,137,451 suspicious activity reports involving digital assets.

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Thune Files Cloture

Senate Majority Leader John Thune filed a cloture motion on August 8, 2026, moving the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act toward a September 15, 2026 vote.
The House approved the bill 294-134 on July 17, 2025.
Senate leaders say the measure stays on the September agenda, though it needs 60 votes that Republicans lack.
Lawmakers remain split over stablecoin-reward rules and ethics provisions, with banks opposing the former and Democrats seeking stricter conflict limits.
Polymarket rates the act’s 2026 passage chance at 16% while Senator Bernie Moreno says negotiations have ended.

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