If the CLARITY Act dies, the regulators already have a plan B running

Atkins Puts Congress on Notice

SEC Chair Paul Atkins (@SECPaulSAtkins) told CNBC the agency is "ready, willing, and able" to write crypto market rules without waiting for Congress, as the CLARITY Act runs out of runway ahead of the August recess. The remarks carry weight: the U.S. Senate has effectively shelved the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act as it rushes to pass other legislation before the summer break. Senate floor action had been targeted for July 20, but missing that window means the bill's momentum almost certainly stalls until 2027.

The bill needs 60 votes in the Senate, but Republicans hold only 53 seats, meaning at least seven Democrats must vote yes. Republicans and crypto-friendly Democrats have yet to reach agreement on key sticking points, including ethics rules for government officials and illicit finance provisions. It is increasingly doubtful the CLARITY Act will become law in 2026 given the upcoming midterm elections that are likely to disrupt Congress this fall.

Project Crypto: The Regulatory Backstop

While legislators debate, the SEC and CFTC have not been idle. Project Crypto, which became a joint SEC-CFTC initiative in January 2026 to harmonize federal oversight of crypto asset markets, produced a landmark interpretive release on March 17, 2026. The joint release provided long-awaited clarity on which crypto assets are securities and which are not, marking a significant shift toward principles-based regulation for digital assets.

The guidance explicitly identifies Bitcoin ($BTC), Ether ($ETH), Solana ($SOL), Cardano, XRP ($XRP), Dogecoin, Polkadot, Avalanche, Chainlink, Litecoin, and several others as digital commodities. These assets now fall primarily under CFTC oversight as commodities rather than potential SEC securities, substantially reducing legal uncertainty for much of the market. The guidance formally supersedes the SEC's 2019 Framework for Investment Contract Analysis of Digital Assets, and does so as a formal interpretive rule under the Administrative Procedure Act, making it more authoritative than the informal frameworks of the past.

For the industry, the practical implication is clear: crypto market rules are being written regardless of what happens on Capitol Hill. Whether through legislation or agency action, the regulatory framework is taking shape, and that shifts the calculus for every lobbying effort and negotiation in Washington.

Sources:
Yahoo Finance: U.S. Senate Shelves Clarity Act Ahead of Summer Break
Ropes & Gray: SEC and CFTC Issue Landmark Joint Guidance on Classification of Crypto Assets
Forbes: SEC, CFTC Issue Joint Crypto Guidance Clarifying Digital Commodities