Breaking: U.S. Senate Delays CLARITY Act again, Crypto Market Structure Vote Slips to Early 2026

The CLARITY Act is no longer expected to pass the U.S. Senate this year. Lawmakers have delayed progress on the crypto market structure proposal after unresolved issues stalled negotiations. Senate committees are now planning to return to the bill in early 2026.

The bill is not yet ready for a final vote, Senator John Kennedy, a member of the Senate Banking Committee, said. He told CNBC that negotiations have made progress, but unresolved issues are still blocking agreement. As a result, the Senate is not in a position to advance the legislation.

The delay marks another setback for a vote that lawmakers had hoped to hold this month. The earliest opportunity for action has now shifted to January 2026. Lawmakers have postponed the planned committee markups once again.

Tim Scott Confirms CLARITY Act Delay and Revised Timeline

Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott verified the new timeline. He said committee work would resume in early 2026.

The bill has been given different names in the Senate and House, but lawmakers have approached it as one crypto market structure bill. Scott accused Democrats of stalling the process. Multiple resistance has paralyzed the CLARITY Act, he added. Scott also said he is hopeful the Senate can consider the bill for a vote early next year.

Policy Divisions Deepen Over DeFi and Crypto Oversight

Even though there’s bipartisan backing for clearer crypto rules, differences remain between the parties and within them over how regulation should be designed. In October, Senate Democrats proposed new DeFi regulation proposal stalls crypto market structure talks. The proposal includes identity verification and following anti-money-laundering rules.

That move was met with strong resistance from the crypto industry. A number of Republican lawmakers echoed those concerns. They cautioned that the proposal would effectively freeze DeFi activity in the United States.

Some Democrats says that moving forward on crypto legislation would lend legitimacy to President Trump’s business ventures. These consist of a Trump-branded meme coin, the World Liberty Financial DeFi project and American Bitcoin, a mining company co-founded by Eric and Donald Trump Jr.

Representative Maxine Waters blasted the effort in a ealier statement. To pass these bills is to make Congress complicit in the president Donald Trump’s “crypto corruption”, she said.