Senate Fails to Advance Trump-Backed Crypto Bill, Triggering Market Declines
The U.S. Senate failed to advance the Clarity Act, a comprehensive cryptocurrency bill supported by President Donald Trump, after it received only 50 votes in favor, falling short of the required 60-vote threshold. Four Republican senators joined all Democrats in voting against the measure, which aimed to establish a regulatory framework for digital assets. The failure occurred just before Congress adjourned for the November midterm elections and resulted in significant market declines for Bitcoin and crypto-related stocks.
The U.S. Senate failed on Tuesday to advance the Clarity Act, a comprehensive cryptocurrency legislation backed by President Donald Trump. The vote was 50-49 in favor, falling 10 votes short of the 60-vote threshold needed to advance most legislation in the 100-seat chamber.
Four Republican senators – Jerry Moran, Susan Collins, Josh Hawley, and Thom Tillis – joined all Democrats in voting against the bill. Senator Thom Tillis switched his vote from yes to no as a procedural move to preserve his ability to bring the measure back up for reconsideration later.
The failure of the bill effectively put it on ice because Congress is set to depart Washington this month ahead of the November midterm elections. Senate Republicans released a new text of the bill on Sunday night in an effort to address concerns from the banking industry and some Democrats, but opponents were not swayed.
The Clarity Act aimed to create a regulatory framework for digital assets to provide them with a more solid legal footing. President Trump has earned more than US$1.4-billion from his family’s crypto ventures and had urged Congress to pass the bill.
Bitcoin fell more than 5 per cent as the vote appeared on track to fail, marking its biggest daily percentage decline since June. Shares of crypto exchange Coinbase and stablecoin issuer Circle fell as much as 10 per cent following the news. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong stated that the SEC and CFTC have the tools to create clear rules under existing authority and expected them to begin working on this.