Crypto Is Winning in Washington Despite Clarity Act Failure, Says Policy Chief

Crypto is winning in Washington even though the Clarity Act failed, says Kristin Smith, president of the Solana Policy Institute. She argues rules that federal regulators finish before summer 2028 could prove hard to reverse.

The Clarity Act, a bill that would have set federal market rules for digital assets, failed in the Senate. However, agency rules are easier to reverse than laws, so timing matters.

Is Crypto Really Winning in Washington?

Smith leads the Solana Policy Institute, a crypto policy group. She is also stepping in as interim CEO of the Blockchain Association, a trade group.

She told Bloomberg the industry has already won the Genius Act, the US stablecoin law. It also won a change to an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) broker rule.

Smith said the legislative fight gave regulators political cover to act. Meanwhile, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) opened public comment Monday on leveraged retail crypto trading rules.

Rulemaking at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the CFTC can take 18 to 24 months, she said.

The Congressional Review Act lets Congress overturn recent agency rules. Smith believes rules completed before that window, around summer 2028, would prove durable.

What Could Still Block Crypto’s Bigger Bill?

Smith called a Clarity revival before the November midterms, or in the lame-duck session after them, unlikely but possible.

She named two hurdles, the president’s family crypto business and banks not yet fully on board. Neither will be solved by year-end, she said.

Smith argues traditional finance and overseas firms would build on finished rules, which would make them harder to undo.

In contrast, Bitwise Chief Investment Officer Matt Hougan concedes crypto’s gains depend on agencies. A new administration could reverse their rules from January 2029.

That leaves crypto’s regulatory future to two agencies racing a deadline less than two years away.