Galaxy Digital: The Senate control battle intensifies, increasing the urgency of the CLARITY Act

ME News Report, May 4th (UTC+8), Galaxy Digital Research Director Alex Thorn posted on X platform warning that the urgency of advancing the “CLARITY Act” has unprecedentedly increased, with the core trigger being the intensifying battle for control of the U.S. Senate in 2026. The bill aims to establish a federal regulatory framework for the crypto market, clarifying the jurisdiction of the SEC and CFTC. The House of Representatives approved it in July 2025 with 294 votes in favor, but it is now stuck in the review stage by the Senate Banking Committee. Thorn analyzed that if the Democrats regain control of the Senate, former Senator Sherrod Brown may return to lead the Banking Committee; if Brown loses his Ohio seat but the Democrats still control the Senate, the committee could be taken over by Elizabeth Warren. Warren is a well-known “hawk” in the crypto industry, advocating for strict regulation for a long time: she has urged the Treasury Department to implement strict rules for the GENIUS Act, explicitly prohibiting the use of foreign exchange stabilization funds or Federal Reserve emergency tools to backstop stablecoins and the crypto industry, opposing the inclusion of crypto assets in retirement accounts, emphasizing their “high volatility, high risk” nature. The personnel changes above mean that once the Democrats control the Senate, crypto regulation will likely shift toward strict scrutiny and tight restrictions. Legislation like the CLARITY Act, which balances industry interests, will be harder to push forward and may even be shelved or rewritten. Thorn emphasized that if the bill fails to pass the Senate Banking Committee review by the end of April, the probability of it being enacted in 2026 will sharply decline to “extremely low,” and subsequent delays may push it back until after 2030 due to congressional power reorganization. (Source: PANews)