Clarity Act heads to Tuesday’s vote with new amendments

The CLARITY Act, aimed at providing a more stable regulatory framework for digital assets, received a major overhaul on the evening of June 8.

The Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute (ANS) was released ahead of Tuesday’s high-stakes markup in the House Financial Services Committee.

According to a recent post on X by FOX Business reporter Eleanor Terrett, this updated version of the CLARITY Act will serve as the foundation for the committee’s deliberations.

She also clarified that this version is the most recent version from the House Financial Services Committee. There is another version from the House Agriculture Committee, which will be marked up separately. Both committees will review and make changes to their versions on Tuesday. After that, the two versions will be merged into one final bill.

The new version features fresh definitions and tweaks expected to significantly influence agencies’ oversight of digital assets, including cryptocurrencies, stablecoins, and decentralized finance. This hearing will set the direction for future crypto regulation as the bill moves into a key stage in lawmaking.

New crypto law clarifies token classification and empowers agencies

This new framework of the CLARITY Act defines which digital tokens are “digital commodities” and which ones are “securities” to identify the responsibilities between the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

These new and clear roles make it easier for companies to comply with the rules and for regulators to enforce them because they reduce confusion and disagreements about how tokens should be classified under existing laws.

The amendment introduces an “investment contract asset” that avoids classifying certain digital tokens as securities contracts to define rules more appropriate for their function.

It also creates a system of provisional registration under the CFTC for digital commodity brokers, exchanges, dealers, and custodians. This allows these firms to continue operating legally while the new rules are implemented during the transition period.

Additionally, the amendment clarifies that certain decentralized finance (DeFi) activities are exempt from registration requirements to promote innovation in the DeFi space. This is because developers, validators, and non-custodial service providers can build and run their projects without permission from the SEC or the CFTC.

The CLARITY Act helps protect investors from unfair practices with its new restrictions on insider sales for tokens in the early stages before they become stable and widely used (blockchain maturity).

To ensure each agency focuses on its roles, the law gives the CFTC full control over spot markets that trade digital commodities and some stablecoins. At the same time, the SEC keeps authority over securities offerings and cases of fraud.

Furthermore, the amendment reverses the SAB 121 guidance by demanding companies provide better disclosures to consumers about the risks and details of digital assets. It also improves how companies must hold and protect digital assets in custody and introduces safeguards that prevent companies from treating user assets as liabilities on their balance sheets.

The amendment to the CLARITY Act also unites companies and regulators to work on new technologies by adding “innovation” to the SEC’s public interest mission and making the LabCFTC program a permanent resource.

Revised CLARITY Act heads to crucial Committee vote

The new substitute text of the CLARITY Act was uploaded to the website on June 8, 2025. This provides members sufficient time to study the revised bill and consider its contents with stakeholders and affected parties before the critical mark-up on June 10 within the House Financial Services Committee.

If the amendment passes, it would become the underlying text for lawmakers to debate and vote on further in the committee. That would be a very serious step toward clear, sensible regulation of cryptocurrency and digital assets in the US.

This new amendment proves that lawmakers across political parties are willing to work together on this issue despite previous partisan disagreements. The sponsors include Representative Republican from Arkansas, French Hill, who has gained bipartisan support from New York Democrat Representative Ritchie Torres.

Many policy observers and industry leaders compare the bill to the Senate’s GENIUS Act. This bill also aims to close regulatory gaps that have left the market vulnerable to fraud and uncertainty with its rules that cover the full range of digital assets.

The revised CLARITY Act reduces confusion and overlaps that caused problems in the past by addressing demands for legal certainty and innovation-friendly regulations. It also gives a clear division of regulatory responsibilities between the SEC and CFTC.

Tuesday’s vote will reveal the House Financial Services Committee has enough willpower to move past gridlock. It will also make meaningful progress toward creating a regulatory framework that protects consumers, supports innovation, and strengthens the crypto industry.

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