The Senate Banking Committee has released the full 309-page draft of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, marking a significant milestone in U.S. cryptocurrency regulation. This extensive draft allows committee members until the end of the business day on Wednesday to submit amendments before a crucial markup vote scheduled for 10:30 AM EST on Thursday. The release follows months of intricate negotiations that nearly unraveled multiple times due to contentious issues surrounding stablecoin yield provisions, ethics regulations, and guidelines for decentralized finance (DeFi).
Among the most notable provisions in the draft is the declaration that major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum are permanently classified as non-securities. This regulation applies to any token that serves as the primary asset of a spot Exchange Traded Product (ETP) as of January 1, 2026. This provision ensures that these cryptocurrencies cannot be reclassified under any future leadership changes at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). For the crypto industry, this legal certainty marks a significant achievement that has been sought after for years.
The draft also offers protection for staking activities, distinctly categorizing them as non-investment activities. It outlines four specific staking structures that would not be treated as securities: self-staking by token holders, self-custodial staking with third-party node operators, liquid staking through receipt tokens, and custodial staking services provided by exchanges. Importantly, the draft clarifies that governance rights associated with a token do not disqualify it from non-security treatment, addressing a long-standing regulatory ambiguity.
In a major shift for traditional financial institutions, Section 401 of the draft allows national banks, state banks, and credit unions to engage in digital asset services without prior regulatory approval. This includes permission for custody of digital assets, staking services, lending against digital assets, payment processing, market making, and underwriting. This provision is particularly significant for an industry that has witnessed banks shying away from crypto clients due to regulatory uncertainties.
The draft also resolves the contentious issue surrounding stablecoin rewards. According to Section 404, exchanges and platforms will be prohibited from offering interest or yield simply for holding stablecoin balances, equating such returns to interest on traditional bank deposits. However, activity-based rewards—such as those related to staking, governance participation, loyalty programs, and rewards based on platform usage—remain permissible. This compromise aims to satisfy banks’ demands for a ban on stablecoins functioning as interest-bearing deposits while maintaining a broader scope for rewards tied to active engagement.
Looking ahead, committee members have a tight timeline to propose amendments before Thursday’s markup. If the bill passes through this critical checkpoint, it will then proceed to a full Senate vote and must eventually reconcile with the House version before reaching the President. The White House has set a target for final signature by July 4, making the upcoming days crucial for shaping the future of digital asset regulation in the U.S.
