Senate Claims Crypto Bill Is Ready, But White House Says 'Do Better'

Senators said on Tuesday that their long-delayed crypto market-structure bill is finally nearing completion, but the White House pushed back after reviewing proposed ethics rules connected to digital asset profits tied to President Donald Trump's family.

Senate Seeks End-Of-Week Draft

Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand, (D-NY), and Cynthia Lummis, (R-Wyo.), told attendees at the Blockchain Association Policy Summit in Washington that bipartisan negotiations have accelerated, with a goal of releasing a draft by the end of the week and holding a markup next week.

Gillibrand said Democrats and Republicans have held productive sessions in recent days and that "nothing is holding up this bill."

Momentum for a federal market-structure framework has grown since the House passed its version, the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, in July. 

The push reflects growing pressure from Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) and broader crypto markets for clearer regulatory boundaries as institutional participation accelerates.

The Senate is now working on two parallel drafts across the Banking and Agriculture Committees.

One proposal divides oversight between the SEC and the CFTC while introducing the term "ancillary assets" to clarify which cryptocurrencies would not be treated as securities.

A separate Agriculture Committee draft released last month focuses on expanding the CFTC's authority.

Talks Expand To Decentralized Finance And Ethics Rules

Gillibrand said the Senate draft aims to address issues the House bill did not, including how to regulate decentralized finance exchanges. 

She said Democrats delivered their final list of changes to Republican staff on Monday evening.

However, one section remains contentious. 

Lummis said she negotiated an ethics proposal with Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) that would restrict elected officials and their families from issuing or profiting from digital assets while in office.

The White House rejected that language.

"The White House kicked it back and said, you can do better than this," Lummis said, adding that she plans to revise and resubmit the provision.

Ethics rules have taken on added political sensitivity after reports that President Donald Trump and his family generated significant income from ventures linked to the World Liberty Financial (CRYPTO: WLFI) DeFi and stablecoin platform, according to Bloomberg.

Negotiators Face Policy, Industry And Political Pressures

Lummis described the talks as "three-dimensional chess," involving Democrats, Republicans, industry participants and the administration simultaneously.

Her comments contrasted with Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio), who said earlier in the week that discussions had been "decently frustrating."

Still, industry groups expect movement before year-end. 

Cody Carbone, CEO of The Digital Chamber, told The Block that the window remains open for market-structure legislation to reach President Trump in early 2026 if committees advance a draft this week.

He said progress on markups would be the clearest sign that Congress is preparing to finalize a bill investors have been awaiting for several years.

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