Republicans in the U.S. Senate released a new 630-page draft of the CLARITY bill before a key procedural vote. This bill is considered one of the important legislations for the U.S. cryptocurrency market and involves the regulatory framework for major digital assets such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP.
New versions of the text have made adjustments to some provisions, but the differences between the two parties have not yet been resolved. Reports mention that some Democrats who are open to encryption legislation still hold a reserved attitude towards ethical controversies, which means whether the bill can proceed depends on the procedural vote in the Senate next week.
September 15th becomes a critical milestone
The Senate's "continuance of debate motion" regarding the CLARITY bill has concluded the debate and voting, with a crucial phase set to begin at 2:15 p.m. Eastern Time on September 15th. This vote is not the final approval of the bill, but rather it determines whether the Senate will officially proceed with the deliberation process.
If Republicans are unable to secure sufficient support from Democratic members, the discussion of the bill may not be able to move forward. The most immediate test at present is not whether the bill will ultimately pass, but whether it can first overcome the procedural hurdles.
DeFi Amendment to Decentralization Recognition
The new draft makes a distinction between truly decentralized protocols and so-called “decentralized financial transaction protocols.” The draft also clarifies that merely participating in a decentralized governance mechanism or joining an event response security committee does not automatically constitute control over the protocol.
This amendment means that, in defining who should bear regulatory responsibilities, the bill attempts to distinguish between ordinary governance participants and actual controllers. At the same time, the draft continues to retain protective provisions for software developers.
In addition, the revised DeFi related statements also clearly focus some regulatory arrangements on the cash market and spot market for digital goods, indicating that the legislative text is further refining the scope of application.
Cooperative credit terms are being strengthened simultaneously.
Apart from the DeFi section, the new version of the bill also strengthens the provisions related to credit cooperatives. According to the draft, regulatory agencies such as the National Credit Union Administration in the United States will still retain their supervisory and enforcement powers.
The bill also makes technical modifications to GENIUS Act, with the goal of giving credit cooperative accounts a status that is closer to that of bank deposits when dealing with tokenized financial products.
This means that the relevant legislation is not only focused on the trading of crypto assets themselves, but also addresses the regulatory coordination issues regarding the integration of tokenized financial products into the traditional financial system.
