The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act has failed to advance in the Senate, and with it goes the industry's best shot at a statute settling who regulates what. According to CoinDesk, the next phase of U.S. crypto regulation now runs through the SEC and CFTC, agencies that are expected to act more quickly than Congress, but whose rules could also be revised or rescinded by future leadership.
What the agencies are doing
- SEC: On September 17 the SEC launched a five‑year "Innovation Exemption" that allows qualifying venues to trade tokenized U.S. stocks through blockchain liquidity pools while permanent rules are being drafted.
- CFTC: On October 5 the CFTC opened a comment period on proposed rules for leveraged retail crypto trading and a new registration category for crypto platforms.
- Video insight: A video on the article page notes that Kraken's parent company backs the CFTC's plan to regulate spot crypto without waiting for congressional action.
The article frames an open question: how much certainty can regulators provide without a clear legislative mandate? Legal experts interviewed for the piece expect gradual progress, noting that only Congress can close the remaining gaps, particularly around spot‑market oversight.
The coalition cracked
Lev Breydo, an assistant professor of law at William & Mary Law School, told CoinDesk that Clarity exposed splits inside the industry, from ethics provisions to the "yield fight" with community banks. He said:
"A coalition that looked unified against Gensler found out definitions create winners and losers."
Analysis
Agency rulemaking does represent progress, but the durability of any exemption is uncertain; a rule adopted by one commission could be altered by the next. Executives quoted in the article see openings in tokenization, DeFi, and dealmaking, while established exchanges may retain a competitive edge because they can better absorb regulatory uncertainty.
Regulatory fog is costly, and larger firms that can afford extensive legal counsel are likely to benefit most. If Clarity's failure ends up shielding incumbents while agencies improvise, the industry may trade the certainty it demanded for speed that could be short‑lived.
Former Rep. Patrick McHenry is cited in a separate video as seeing a "lame‑duck window" for the bill. Whether Congress will revisit the legislation remains to be seen.