Crypto Industry Supports Compromise on CLARITY Act, Urges Senate Banking Committee to Move Forward

Within hours of the release of a compromise text by U.S. Senators Thom Tillis and Angela Alsobrooks on stablecoin yield in the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, crypto trade groups called for a markup of the key market structure legislation. The compromise text prohibits crypto firms from offering interest or yield on stablecoin balances in a manner equivalent to traditional bank deposits, while allowing for rewards programs tied to genuine activities or transactions. The Treasury and the CFTC have been directed to establish rules within a year of the bill's enactment. Blockchain Association CEO Summer Mersinger welcomed the deal as a step in the right direction, emphasizing the need for a clear legal framework to prevent top talent and innovative companies from relocating elsewhere. The Crypto Council for Innovation also endorsed the bill, despite raising concerns that the new language extends the prohibition framework too far. CEO Ji Hun Kim urged the committee to advance the bill, stating that the goal is to ensure the U.S. leads in the crypto space. Other industry leaders, including Circle's Dante Disparte and Coinbase's Brian Armstrong, also expressed support for the compromise. The Senate Banking Committee had previously postponed a markup of the CLARITY Act in January, but the yield language has been the major obstacle. To comply with the new rules, firms will need to restructure their rewards programs from a 'buy and hold' model to a 'buy and use' approach.