Crypto Market Structure Bill Faces Delay, Full Implementation May Slip to 2029

TD Cowen has warned that the political realities in Washington could cause the passage of the crypto market structure bill to be delayed until 2027. The implementation could also be extended towards the end of the decade.

Why is the Crypto Market Structure Bill Stalling?

Analysts of policies from TD Cowen forecast that the way ahead for the crypto bill is unclear.  The Research Group of TD Cowen said that although the bill is technically possible to move forward this year, the likelihood of its approval continues to slip into 2027, with enforcement not until 2029.

A reason for the slowdown, according to TD Cowen managing director Jaret Seiberg, is the shifting political imperative. Democrats might not think it is necessary to pass it quickly if they think they might take control of the House of Representatives in 2026 midterm elections.

Nevertheless, Seiberg did admit that the pace of the talks is likely to hasten if the two sides recognize the benefits of compromise over the cloudy nature of uncertainty. He said congressional aides have already spent months working on the technical language. This means a possible agreement could emerge soon.

“Election outcomes are always uncertain, which is why Democrats may cut a deal. That could happen quickly, as staff have been working on the technical language for months,” he said.

One of the hottestly debated issues in the crypto market structure bill is the conflict of interest provision. The Democratic party is advocating for provisions that ban government officials from holding or running any crypto-business enterprises.

However, such provisions would face stiff resistance from President Donald Trump unless their enforcement period was delayed several years. Any provision that applies immediately to Trump or members of his family would cause any kind of negotiation to stall.

This is even more so given the previous news about how crypto-related investments like American Bitcoin have increased the net worth of the Trump family.

Delayed Enforcement Could Be the Compromise

One proposal being considered is that the enforcement date for conflict-of-interest policies would be three years after enactment. This means that enforcement would occur after the next presidential term and thus would not affect Trump.

“Time favors enactment as the problems disappear if the bill passes in 2027 and takes effect in 2029. Crypto would need to accept that the presidential election could impact the final rules, and Democrats would need to accept that the conflict provision will not apply to Trump,” he said.

TD Cowen says that Democrats would be unlikely to accept that concession unless the whole crypto market structure bill were similarly delayed. Such a compromise would enable both sides to claim progress.

In the meantime, legislating heads are expected to zero in on the CLARITY Act. This is a key piece in the effort of the crypto market structure bill. A bipartisan meeting is scheduled for this week. This comes just before legislating heads break for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day recess.