The Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act cleared the US Senate Banking Committee on Thursday in a 15-9 vote, with Democratic Senators Ruben Gallego and Angela Alsobrooks joining all 13 Republicans to send the crypto market-structure bill toward a full Senate floor vote. The legislation would split oversight of digital assets between the SEC and the CFTC and set registration and disclosure rules for exchanges, brokers and custodians, advancing alongside a related Senate Agriculture Committee text expected to merge before any floor vote.
What was argued at the markup? Committee chair Tim Scott said the bill was focused on protecting consumers, keeping innovation in the US and safeguarding national security, in opening statements reported by Cointelegraph. Ranking member Elizabeth Warren called it "a bill written by the crypto industry for the crypto industry" and accused Republicans of helping advance what she termed 
Trump's "crypto grift," a characterization Senator Cynthia Lummis rejected as she defended the bill as pro-consumer and pro-law-enforcement.
Which amendments were fought over? Lawmakers proposed more than 100 amendments, many failing along party lines, Cointelegraph reported. Democratic efforts to add stronger anti-money-laundering tools, citing stablecoin use by Iranian actors in the Strait of Hormuz, were defeated in 11-13 votes. A Chris Van Hollen amendment to bar the president, vice president and members of Congress from crypto-firm business ties, tied to Donald Trump's World Liberty Financial venture, also failed 11-13, with Senator Bernie Moreno arguing the measure carried criminal penalties and belonged in the Judiciary Committee, Bitcoin Magazine reported.
What happens next? The merged bill is expected to head for a Senate floor vote where it will need 60 votes to pass, after which the House would need to approve the amended text, the markup coverage said. Industry figures described the committee vote as a decisive turning point even as ethics questions lingered.
Figures referenced: Donald Trump. — JudgeMarket.
