Michael Saylor moves on from stalled CLARITY Act as SEC, CFTC set to take over

Michael Saylor has said that he expects the SEC, CFTC, and Treasury to write crypto rules under existing law now that the CLARITY Act has stalled in the Senate. 

Following the continuous stalling from Congress, Bitcoin holders and banks are now expecting agencies to sort crypto’s legal status.

Will the CLARITY Act be passed anytime soon? 

In a post on X, a day after the Senate blocked the CLARITY vote, Michael Saylor wrote that regulators can act now instead of waiting on legislators.

“Progress need not wait for Congress,” Saylor wrote. He said he expects banks to widen Bitcoin custody and to lend against the asset, and for more capital to move toward Bitcoin and digital credit. He also pointed to the GENIUS Act as support for stablecoin adoption.

The framing marks a pivot away from the legislative route the industry spent more than a year chasing. Saylor did not treat the bill as finished, but his message was that the outcome he wants no longer depends on its passing.

Cryptopolitan reported that the Senate rejected cloture on the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act by a vote of 49 to 50. The motion needed 60 votes and fell short by 11.

Every vote in favor of the bill came from a Republican. However, Susan Collins of Maine, Josh Hawley of Missouri, Jerry Moran of Kansas, and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who are all Republicans, voted no. 

No Democrat or independent backed the motion, and Delaware’s Chris Coons did not vote.

The measure would have split oversight of digital assets between the SEC and the CFTC and set registration rules for exchanges, brokers, and dealers. It failed at the first procedural step, so the Senate never reached amendments or a vote on passage.

Republicans had presented a final revised version of the bill, saying it managed to include 126 changes requested by Democrats. 

Can regulators fill the legislative gap? 

Former CFTC Chairman J. Christopher Giancarlo told journalist Eleanor Terrett that the loss was a disappointment but would not stop the “march of innovation” in the United States. He stated that SEC Chairman Paul Atkins and the current CFTC Chairman Michael Selig would continue to develop the industry under their current authority. Atkins has also said the agency will keep going regardless of what Congress does. 

For example, in August, the SEC proposed what it called Regulation Crypto Assets, which would let firms issue up to $5 million in tokens over four years and up to $75 million over 12 months. It also includes a provision for a safe harbor, keeping some cryptocurrencies from being treated as investment contracts.

Selig, meanwhile, directed CFTC staff to draft market-structure rules for crypto using powers the agency already holds, including a purpose-built designated contract market framework for leveraged trading, as Cryptopolitan reported in August.

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong also argued after the vote that both the CFTC and SEC already have the tools to set clear rules. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse also called on Atkins and Selig to act, and Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott said the agencies should write rules until lawmakers pass a bill.

Analysts at Bernstein expect “aggressive and swift” rulemaking from the SEC and CFTC to recover the time spent negotiating CLARITY.

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