The U.S. House of Representatives, following a record-breaking procedural vote lasting nearly 10 hours, moved forward to advance key crypto legislation on Wednesday. The House narrowly passed a procedural vote to reopen debate after an initial failure on Tuesday, when the House Freedom Caucus voted against advancing to debate and a final vote.

This procedural move required a majority vote before the House could proceed to vote on the actual bills. The successful passage of the procedural vote paves the way for final votes on the Clarity Act and the GENIUS Act. The first procedural measure passed with a slim margin of 217-215, indicating to industry observers that the bills may pass relatively smoothly. However, the second vote, which commenced at 1:19 p.m.

ET and concluded at 11:04 p.m. ET, was marked by a delay of several hours after a handful of Republicans initially voted 'no', although the final vote saw the motion pass with 217 votes in favor and 212 against.

Members of the House Freedom Caucus utilized their votes to secure the inclusion of an anti-CBDC bill in the National Defense Authorization Act, a bill that both chambers of Congress vote on annually. Typically, in procedural votes, the majority and minority parties adhere to party-line votes, regardless of the expected level of bipartisan support for the underlying legislation, as is anticipated for the crypto bills. As the vote progressed, a 'Dear Colleague' letter sent to House Democrats urged them to vote against the underlying bills, highlighting the difficulties Republicans faced in clearing the procedural hurdle. The letter questioned the ability of Republicans to manage complex legislation, given the chaos surrounding their own priorities.

The House is scheduled to vote on the GENIUS Act on Thursday, and if it passes, it will be sent to the U.S. President's desk for signature.

The Clarity Act may receive a vote the following week, according to Punchbowl News. While the market structure Clarity bill will proceed to the Senate for a vote, the GENIUS bill's next step is the President's desk for signature.

Both bills are expected to garner bipartisan support, despite the recent setback.