Senate blocks crypto market bill in procedural vote

The US Senate blocked the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act on Tuesday, preventing cryptocurrency firms from gaining a comprehensive federal market structure framework. The cloture motion on H.R. 3633 was defeated 49-50, requiring 60 votes to end debate. Republican senators Jerry Moran, Susan Collins, Josh Hawley and Thom Tillis, along with Democrats, opposed advancing the bill, with Tillis changing his vote for procedural reasons.

The defeat stalls the legislation as Congress nears its pre-election recess and reduces time for another attempt before the November midterm elections. The bill aimed to divide oversight between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, with CFTC having a larger role over digital commodities and registration/disclosure requirements for market participants.

The House had passed an earlier version in July 2025, but Senate Republicans released revised text after months of negotiations with Democrats and banking groups. Sponsors incorporated 126 changes requested by Democrats, but the bill still lacked strong enough safeguards for public officials' crypto interests, illicit finance and sanctions evasion.

Democratic senators Cory Booker and Adam Schiff criticized the measure, while Republican sponsors rejected their concerns. The vote exposed divisions within the Republican conference, with Tillis's final no vote being procedural, allowing a senator on the prevailing side to seek reconsideration later. The setback affects financial firms expanding crypto trading, custody, tokenization, and stablecoin services, as banks, exchanges, and asset managers seek rules to reduce uncertainty around product classification, capital requirements, and regulatory jurisdiction.