Bessent ramps up push for CLARITY Act in Congress

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent wrote in an op-ed on Wednesday that the Senate should pass the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act now, arguing that limited floor time makes prompt action necessary. He said that the bill would provide regulatory clarity for cryptocurrencies, tokenized assets, decentralized exchanges and stablecoins.

The U.S. House approved the CLARITY Act in July 2025. The Senate has delayed action repeatedly while lawmakers debate how the bill should treat yields offered on stablecoins.

Banking groups have warned that yield-bearing stablecoins could draw deposits away from banks and reduce lending. Crypto industry proponents say yields support innovation and help keep U.S. markets competitive with other jurisdictions. Eric Trump accused big banks of blocking stablecoin yields to stop Americans from getting higher yields on their savings and to shut down customer rewards and perks. 

A report from White House economists, prepared by the Council of Economic Advisers, estimated that banning yields on stablecoins would increase total U.S. bank lending by about $2.1 billion, or roughly 0.02% of a $12 trillion loan market. The report estimated community banks would gain about $500 million. It also projected an $800 million annual welfare loss from denying consumers access to those returns.

President Donald Trump criticized banks for slowing passage of the CLARITY Act and the companion GENIUS Act, saying they are using the dispute over stablecoin yields to hold the bills “hostage.”

Separately, the Treasury has proposed a regulatory framework under the GENIUS Act that would require payment stablecoin issuers to implement anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorism-financing programs, comply with sanctions rules, and have authority to block, freeze or reject certain transactions. The proposal would treat payment stablecoin issuers as financial institutions under the Bank Secrecy Act.

Industry observers warn those compliance requirements would change how issuers operate. Snir Levi, chief executive of a blockchain intelligence firm, warned the rules could lead to more wallet freezes, transaction blocking and asset seizures at scale, effectively making issuers act like bank gatekeepers.

Supporters of the CLARITY Act say the legislation would create a single, predictable regulatory standard for digital-asset activity, including tokenized assets and decentralized exchanges. Opponents continue to press for clearer language on what activities would be permitted and how yields would be treated, a disagreement that has held up Senate consideration despite the House vote.