Commodity Futures Trading Commission Chairman Michael Selig emphasized that the Clarity Act is nearing completion, following Congress’s failure to meet its July 4 deadline for advancing the crypto market-structure bill. “We’re so close. We have to get this done,” Selig stated during an interview with Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo. Analysts currently assess the bill’s chances of passage before the August 7 recess as roughly even.
The legislation aims to establish a bifurcated regulatory framework for digital assets, assigning oversight responsibilities to both the CFTC and the Securities and Exchange Commission—a division the cryptocurrency industry has long advocated. While the House approved the bill last summer, the Senate has not yet scheduled a floor vote.
Selig, a Trump appointee confirmed in December, framed the Clarity Act as essential for U.S. competitiveness. “It’s critical that we have a federal standard for crypto assets,” he said, criticizing the existing patchwork of state regulations as detrimental to business. He highlighted the bill’s objectives of providing regulatory certainty, clarity, and consumer protections, describing it as bipartisan in nature. “We have to get it across the line,” he added.
Regarding delays, Selig attributed setbacks to expanded debates over ethics provisions tied to President Trump and his family’s cryptocurrency ventures, calling such discussions a distraction. “There’s a little bit of creep into ethics and other issues, and they’re just derailing the real opportunity to have a bipartisan bill,” he argued.
Democrats have positioned the Clarity Act as a consumer protection measure, though disputes persist over illicit finance provisions and a revived section of the GENIUS Act related to stablecoin yield payments on exchanges. Senator Cynthia Lummis, chair of the Senate Banking Committee’s digital assets subcommittee, indicated negotiators plan to finalize and vote on the bill this month.
The committee previously advanced the measure in a 15-9 vote, with two Democrats joining Republicans. Lawmakers warn that inaction before the recess could postpone progress for years. Meanwhile, Selig addressed prediction markets, noting the CFTC’s proposed regulations and legal challenges to state jurisdictions controlling platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket, which processed $24 billion in volume last year. He also commented on crypto’s stability during recent geopolitical tensions involving Iran, emphasizing the agency’s efforts to maintain order in energy and derivatives markets.
