US crypto legislation heads to Senate showdown as CLARITY Act needs 60 votes
The clock is ticking on one of the most closely watched pieces of US crypto legislation in years, and this week’s Senate maneuvering shows just how tight that window has become. John Thune, in his role as Senate Majority Leader, initiated cloture proceedings on a motion to bring the CLARITY Act to the floor, thereby establishing the stage for a procedural vote once lawmakers return to Washington in September. The move revives a bill that industry groups have pushed for months, even as separate legal and political battles involving Bybit, North Korea-linked hackers, and former FTX chief Sam Bankman-Fried keep crypto’s regulatory and reputational risks in the headlines.
Key takeaways
- Senate Majority Leader John Thune filed cloture on the CLARITY Act, teeing up a procedural vote after the Senate reconvenes on September 14, 2026.
- The bill would create a federal market structure for digital assets and split oversight between the SEC and the CFTC, but ethics language tied to President Donald Trump’s crypto holdings remains unresolved.
- A US court granted Bybit expedited discovery to trace assets from the $1.5 billion North Korea-linked hack, backing a lawsuit filed under seal against North Korea, its Reconnaissance General Bureau, and the Lazarus Group.
- Reform UK chair Lee Anderson is demanding a parliamentary probe into a $50,000 donation tied to Sam Bankman-Fried that reportedly reached UK Defense Secretary Wes Streeting.
- A US appeals court this week upheld Bankman-Fried’s fraud conviction and 25-year prison sentence.
Progress on US Crypto Legislation With the CLARITY Act
The CLARITY Act inches closer to a Senate floor fight, but it still doesn’t have a guaranteed path to passage. Thune’s cloture filing is a procedural trigger, not a green light — invoking cloture requires 60 votes, meaning Republicans need Democratic support to clear the hurdle before the bill can even receive a final vote.
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