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Coinbase VP says CLARITY Act gains momentum as Senate ethics fight intensifies

Coinbase VP says CLARITY Act gains momentum as Senate ethics fight intensifies

Former CFTC Commissioner Chris Giancarlo says crypto innovation will continue even without the bill, as the House-passed measure awaits Senate action amid oversight, ethics and Bank Secrecy Act concerns.

Fact Check
All three components of the claim are independently corroborated. Cryptobriefing quotes Ryan VanGrack (Coinbase) describing the CLARITY Act as near passage ('on the one-yard line'), matching 'near the goal line' / gaining momentum, and the cryptonews.net/bitcoinsistemi report echoes the momentum framing. U.Today documents former Barclays CEO Bob Diamond touting the bill's benefits for banks and blockchain-based finance. The Bitcoin.com News X post confirms Abra CEO Bill Barhydt discussing the CLARITY Act, a borderless financial system, and a tokenized future. The only minor nuance is VanGrack's title (VP vs. Vice Chair), which does not undermine the substance.
Summary

Coinbase Vice President Ryan VanGrack said the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, or CLARITY Act, has gained “tremendous momentum” and marks a shift in the U.S. crypto debate from enforcement battles toward market structure and growth. Supporters including former Barclays CEO Bob Diamond, Abra CEO Bill Barhydt, BlackRock, Fidelity, Goldman Sachs and Franklin Templeton have backed the bill, while Stand With Crypto said supporters contacted Congress 1 million times before the Senate recess. The House passed the measure in July 2025 by a 294-134 vote, but it remains stalled in the Senate, where ethics disputes tied to President Donald Trump’s crypto interests, developer protections linked to the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act, illicit-finance provisions, application of the Bank Secrecy Act under the GENIUS Act and concerns that it could weaken state and local enforcement have complicated its path. Former U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission Commissioner Chris Giancarlo said the industry has become too fixated on the bill and argued that blockchain-based financial change will still arrive even if the legislation fails.

Terms & Concepts
  • CLARITY Act: Proposed U.S. digital-asset market-structure legislation intended to create a federal framework and clarify oversight roles between the SEC and the CFTC.
  • Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act: A proposal tied to treatment of non-custodial crypto builders and developers, which supporters say would codify existing Treasury policy under the Bank Secrecy Act.
  • spot markets: Markets for immediate asset trading, which the CLARITY Act would place more clearly under CFTC oversight for sufficiently decentralized assets.