The CLARITY Act, a bill aimed at creating a comprehensive federal regulatory framework for digital assets, has faced significant opposition from three Democratic senators. Chris Murphy, Jeff Merkley, and Chris Van Hollen have come out against the current version of the document, insisting on the inclusion of stringent anti-corruption provisions.
At a press conference on July 14, the senators clearly stated their position: the bill should not create a new regulatory system if it fails to curb conflicts of interest related to the cryptocurrency business of President Donald Trump and his family. "There is no point in creating a new regulatory system for cryptocurrencies if it does not stop Trump's corruption in this industry," Murphy said, emphasizing that the head of state should not influence the rules of an industry in which he has personal financial interests.
Ban for Officials: A Key Requirement
Merkley proposed including provisions from the MEME Act or the End Crypto Corruption Act in the CLARITY Act. These acts directly prohibit the president, vice president, cabinet members, high-ranking federal officials, members of Congress, and their immediate relatives from owning a crypto business, promoting digital assets, or profiting from them. "It is not enough to prepare an amendment or a separate anti-corruption law. It must actually be stopped," the senator stressed.
Van Hollen, for his part, had previously proposed similar restrictions during the consideration of the CLARITY Act in the Senate Banking Committee. His initiative also included a ban on owning, promoting, or being associated with digital asset issuers and crypto platforms for officials and their relatives. However, a number of Democratic amendments were rejected, while others were deemed improperly drafted by Committee Chairman Tim Scott.
Additionally, Van Hollen insisted on strengthening measures against money laundering, sanctions evasion, and terrorist financing through DeFi, as well as expanding disclosure requirements and introducing restrictions on insider trading. None of these provisions were included in the version of the document approved by the committee.
What the CLARITY Act Proposes
The primary goal of the CLARITY Act is to delineate the powers of the SEC and CFTC in the digital asset market. The SEC will continue to oversee transactions involving investment contracts, while the CFTC will gain primary authority over spot trading of digital commodities. The document also provides for a special disclosure regime for crypto project developers and the registration of intermediaries.
Consideration of the bill is expected next week, starting July 20. To overcome the procedural hurdle, it will require 60 votes. Earlier, CFTC Chairman Michael Selig called for expediting the adoption of the document, threatening that regulators would "write all the rules" for the crypto industry themselves if Congress did not take this step. Trump himself made a similar demand.
Supporters of the document argue that it introduces disclosure requirements, preserves authorities' powers to combat fraud, and establishes uniform rules for the industry. However, in my view, the key issue remains unresolved: without clear anti-corruption barriers, the CLARITY Act risks becoming not a tool for market protection, but a way to legalize conflicts of interest at the highest level. And this, perhaps, is the main reason why its fate in the Senate remains uncertain.