Senate Scraps Crypto Clarity Vote, Bill's 2025 Chances Dim

Senate Majority Leader John blocked the procedural vote on the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act that had been expected before the August recess. The decision, announced late Thursday, effectively ends any near-term path for the bill to become law this year. Supporters insist negotiations will continue when lawmakers return in mid-September.

The bill's path was already narrow. Even if a cloture vote had been scheduled, the number of unresolved issues made passage unlikely, according to legislative aides and industry sources who spoke with CoinDesk. The biggest sticking point has been President Donald Trump's crypto business ties, which alarmed Democrats as far back as the May 2025 negotiations on the GENIUS Act. Trump's disclosure of $1.4 billion in profit from his crypto ventures hardened those concerns. One source called it the "kill shot" for Friday's talks.

Other flashpoints remain. Law enforcement provisions and agriculture-related issues are still being debated. Separately, a growing number of lawmakers have raised questions about stablecoin yield and rewards. Taken together, the pile of outstanding issues would have made even a successful procedural vote difficult.

Senator Angela Alsobrook said in a statement that the goal remains to get the bill through. "We've worked for over a year on a bipartisan basis to protect consumers, limit deposit flight, fight illicit finance and include a fair deal on ethics," she said. "We will continue our work – getting Clarity Act right remains our goal."