White House czar says crypto CLARITY Act set for Senate markup in January

The White House’s chief crypto and artificial intelligence policy official says that the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act — historic legislation intended to clarify the regulatory authority applicable to digital assets — is slated for Senate markup early next year, representing a significant advance for U.S. crypto policy. 

White House AI and crypto czar David Sacks posted to X, noting that Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott and Agriculture Committee Chair John Boozman had confirmed that the bipartisan crypto bill will reach the Senate next month.

”We are closer than ever to passing the landmark crypto market structure legislation that President Trump has called for. We look forward to finishing the job in January!”

Sacks says negotiators are hoping the House-approved CLARITY Act will be sent to the Senate for debate and amendment in January, the official start date of the legislative process, ahead of a potential floor vote. The announcement arrives as lawmakers and industry leaders scramble to develop a common regulatory framework for digital asset markets.

Sacks’ revelation comes as the United States Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) says it is granting banks the ability to conduct riskless principal transactions related to crypto assets.

TradFi banks that had been dipping their toes in via pilots now have the approval to go for full-scale crypto integration. The OCC has, over time, reversed the cautionary approach it took between 2021 and 2024, when it imposed strict guardrails and joined the Fed in warning about crypto risks, such as liquidity and volatility.

According to the letter from the OCC, traditional banks are explicitly permitted to engage in riskless principal crypto-asset transactions, where the banks act as matched intermediaries in trades without the need to hold assets.

As it stands, only a few purely crypto banks, such as Anchorage Digital, hold OCC charters. With approval, more hybrids could emerge soon.

CFTC set to take lead as CLARITY Act redraws U.S. crypto rulebook

The CLARITY Act, now enacted by the House in July 2025 (H.R. 3633), will grant the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) a key regulatory role across most digital assets. It also aims to establish clearer meanings for “digital commodities” and reduce the regulatory perimeter that has kept the industry in legal limbo for years.

Supporters of the bill argue that it will reduce regulatory uncertainty for crypto firms by establishing clearer compliance pathways, encourage innovation, and strengthen investor protections.

“The CLARITY Act might offer the clear rules of the road that the industry in America needs to innovate,” Sacks said, underscoring the Biden and Trump administrations’ mutual focus on strengthening American competitiveness in the emerging markets. 

While the House delivered the CLARITY Act on a bipartisan basis over the past year, the Senate has constructed its own drafts of legislation. The Senate Agriculture and Senate Banking Committees have circulated drafts of discussions similar to those in the House legislation, but on topics such as decentralized finance and anti-money laundering standards. 

U.S. regulators continued to work on the CLARITY Act during the record 43-day government shutdown in October and November, meeting with executives from companies such as Coinbase, Ripple, Kraken, Circle, and tech-focused venture capital firms a16z and Paradigm.

Industry cheers clearer crypto rules

Cryptocurrency companies and investors have generally welcomed signs that Congress is leaning toward clearer regulatory guardrails. Industry advocates have also stated that a firm market structure framework could help mitigate some of the legal uncertainty that has prompted innovation abroad, as well as deter institutions from engaging in such activities. 

Yet a handful of consumers and investor watchdog groups have argued that a faster stream towards regulation should also guarantee firm protection from fraud and market manipulation, especially in the area of decentralized finance (DeFi), where regulatory limits are often unclear.

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