The Clarity Act cleared the Senate Banking Committee by a vote of 15-9 on Thursday, sending bitcoin past $82,000 for the first time in weeks.
summary
- The Senate Banking Committee advanced the Clarity Act on a bipartisan vote of 15-9, with two Democrats crossing the aisle to support the bill.
- Bitcoin rose above $82,000 after the committee vote before retreating to around $81,500, up roughly 2.5% on the day.
- Unresolved ethics provisions and the 60-vote threshold remain in the Senate as the bill moves toward a full Senate vote before the May 21 recess.
The Clarity Act advanced from the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday on a bipartisan vote of 15-9, clearing the way for an important legislative gateway to the most important cryptocurrency market structure bill in U.S. history. Bitcoin (Bitcoin) He went up Above $82,000 after the vote before retreating slightly to around $81,500, up roughly 2.5% on the day.
Two Democratic senators crossed the aisle to support the bill along with all 13 Republicans on the committee. Chairman Tim Scott had described securing all 13 Republican votes as a “red zone,” with Senator John Kennedy withholding support in the days leading up to the session.
Cody Carbone, who heads the digital chamber, told reporters that unresolved ethical rulings on lawmakers trading cryptocurrency tokens remain the most likely hurdle before the vote. “I imagine the deal will be completed before it goes out, because they won’t want to go out unless they’re confident they’re going to get 60,” Carbone said.
What the law of clarity does
Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, which already Pass A 294-134 House vote in July 2025 would draw a legal line between the SEC and the CFTC. Digital commodities will fall under the supervision of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and digital securities will remain under the supervision of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), ending years of regulatory uncertainty that has suppressed institutional flows into US cryptocurrency markets.
The bill still needs 60 votes in the Senate, alignment with the Senate Agriculture Committee’s version, and alignment with the House text before it reaches the president’s desk. The full text of the 309-page bill is available at www.congress.gov. Senators Lummis and Moreno both warned that missing the May 21 Memorial Day holiday deadline could push the next viable legislative window to 2030.
White House counsel Patrick Witt indicated that the administration would not accept ethics rulings that specifically target the president, adding another layer of negotiations before voting begins. Democratic senators have tied their support to broader moral language that includes all lawmakers and officials.
Coinbase VP Kara Calvert He said In the 2026 consensus, bipartisan support is non-negotiable and the bill needs at least 60 votes to advance. For Bitcoin, which now trades at around $81,500, the committee’s vote primarily serves as a signal of confidence.
The bill’s relevance to BTC has less to do with its commodity classification and more to do with what the US digital asset’s stable framework does to institutional risk appetite across the broader market.
