CLARITY Act Failure Could Let Trump’s SEC Fast-Track Crypto, Says Expert

The SEC could see an unanticipated benefit from the crypto industry’s failure to pass the CLARITY Act, said ETF expert Nate Geraci: increased ability to expedite regulations via existing legislation under President Donald Trump. However, Congress has yet to act on it, and the SEC seems to be taking steps to implement its own crypto plan, regardless.

How CLARITY Act Failure Could Impact SEC’s Crypto Regulation

In a post on X, ETF expert Nate Geraci pointed out that this bill may have an unanticipated effect on the industry if it fails to make it through.

“Politics aside… It’s ironic that Congress failing to pass the CLARITY Act will result in President Trump’s SEC doing pretty much whatever they want within existing laws to fast-track crypto industry,” Geraci wrote.

He said that a new administration may undo some of the changes made by the SEC. However, he noted that the crypto industry’s rapid evolution may be a key consideration in figuring out the trouble it’ll have with unwinding those changes.

“But crypto moves at warp speed. Might be too late at that point,” Geraci added.

SEC Set to Discuss New Crypto Offering Rules

Earlier, Geraci spelled out the SEC’s plans to advance crypto-related efforts despite a lack of action in Congress.

“SEC not waiting on Clarity Act… Set to ‘unveil major crypto plans’,” he wrote. Geraci also added that this setup may include an innovation exemption for tokenized securities.

The SEC is holding an open meeting on Friday to discuss a proposed rule to establish a “tailored offering” framework for crypto investment contracts. The proposal would further the agenda of the SEC’s Regulation Crypto Assets (“Reg Crypto”), a plan to regulate cryptocurrencies and crypto-related services by the SEC Chair Paul Atkins.

The meeting is being organized by the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance. It will start at 10:00 AM ET and will be broadcast live publicly on the web.

If such a framework is approved for further consideration, the proposed framework could create an alternative approach to regulation for certain crypto asset offerings where instead of traditional securities offering requirements are applied.

Crypto Bill Moves Forward Despite Senate Delay

In the past, Atkins has stated that the SEC is ready to solve the issues it deems are pressing in the regulatory realm of the crypto market even without the involvement of Congress.

“We’re ready, willing and able to come out with rules that address the same issues in the Clarity Act and other aspects of the crypto market,” Atkins said.

Brett W. Redfearn, President of Securitize, also called for regulators to proceed while lawmakers remain deadlocked.

“No more waiting there for Congress to pass the Clarity Act! It’s time for the agencies to act,” Redfearn said.

In the meantime, the CLARITY Act is languishing in the Senate and has not moved since before the start of the August recess. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has introduced a cloture motion and is waiting for return of lawmakers in September for votes to be cast. With 60 votes needed for advancing the bill, prediction markets expected a mere 20% chance of the legislation passing in 2026.