Congress | Crypto

SEC chair Paul Atkins is under fire from Senator Elizabeth Warren, who says he “may have been deliberately trying” to mislead Congress about the agency’s enforcement activity. US Senator Elizabeth Warren has accused Paul Atkins, the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission, of possibly lying to Congress about the agency’s enforcement numbers. Warren, the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, said in a letter to Atkins dated Wednesday that the SEC’s enforcement data for fiscal year 2025, released on April 7, raised “significant concerns” about his answers at a Feb. 12 congressional hearing. “At the hearing, I specifically asked you to comment on publicly available data highlighting a decline in SEC enforcement activity,” Warren said. “In response, you demurred, stating that you were ‘not sure what data’ I was looking at.” Read more

Washington isn't trying to solve every crypto policy fight at once, but it appears to be carving out a workable path for one specific category of digital asset: the regulated, dollar-pegged stablecoin. The GENIUS Act established the first federal regulatory framework for payment stablecoins, and a bipartisan House tax discussion draft now proposes friendlier tax […] The post Congress on verge of making regulated dollar stablecoins act almost like digital cash appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Senator Elizabeth Warren said Paul Atkins may have intentionally misled Congress by pushing back over the SEC's dwindling enforcement actions.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the CLARITY Act is vital to setting clear rules for crypto, tokenized assets and decentralized exchanges, and that US leadership is at stake. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has asked Congress to pass the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act without delay, warning that Senate floor time is limited and now is the moment to act. In a Wall Street Journal op-ed on Wednesday, Bessent said the legislation is critical for providing clear regulatory rules for digital assets, including cryptocurrencies, tokenized assets and decentralized exchanges. He warned that with the global crypto market rising to $3 trillion and nearly one in six Americans holding digital assets, the stakes for US leadership in financial innovation are higher than ever. “To preserve it and rise to the challenge before us, Congress must pass the Clarity Act. Senate floor time is scarce, and now is the time to act,” he wrote. Read more

Washington is building a cleaner lane for digital dollars, and the consequence for Bitcoin is becoming easier to map. Over the past year, U.S. lawmakers, regulators, and the White House have moved in the same direction. The GENIUS Act framework advanced in the Senate with language built around payment stablecoins, reserve backing, consumer protection, and […] The post Congress aims to make digital dollars easier to use than Bitcoin solidifying the ‘digital gold’ narrative appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Congress has introduced the Digital Asset PARITY Act, a bipartisan discussion draft introduced by Reps. Steven Horsford and Max Miller, who would rewrite Section 1091 to cover “specified assets.” The category explicitly includes actively traded digital assets and their derivatives, and carves out a narrow class of regulated payment stablecoins from routine gain-or-loss recognition. The […] The post Congress proposes removal of widely used Bitcoin tax loophole and giving it to regulated stablecoins appeared first on CryptoSlate.

The President-backed effort to set broader rules for US crypto markets is nearing a political deadline in Congress as banks press lawmakers and regulators to block stablecoin companies from offering rewards that resemble interest on deposits. The fight has become one of the central unresolved questions in Washington’s crypto agenda. At stake is whether dollar-linked […] The post Congress has only weeks left to convince banks on crypto CLARITY Act or risk losing it to midterms appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Iran-linked contracts drove prediction market activity higher as the CFTC opened rulemaking and Democrats moved to ban war and death bets. Prediction market activity has climbed sharply as traders flock to contracts tied to the escalating US-Iran conflict, while Washington moves toward clearer federal rules for event contracts and a legislative push to explicitly bar markets tied to war, terrorism and death. Notional trading volume on Polymarket and Kalshi rose to new all-time highs during the week ending Monday, March 9, to $2.49 billion and $2.85 billion, respectively, according to Token Terminal data. The growing activity has pushed the total notional volume across all prediction markets to $145 billion through 2.8 million unique users, data from Dune shows. While the ongoing conflict drives more activity to these platforms, US regulators are seeking public feedback on new prediction market legislation and weighing a potential ban on war and terrorism-related event contracts. Read more

While Congress pushes ahead with the CLARITY Act, the unfinished fight over how the U.S. draws the line between “crypto” and “securities” is spilling into public view, and into a familiar blame game. Online, critics argue the bill’s structure could hardwire advantages for regulated incumbents, with centralized platforms accused of quietly backing tweaks that would […] The post Crypto yields expose the exact amount banks are underpaying you, and why they want Congress to ban it appeared first on CryptoSlate.

The 2024 US election saw more money and support from the crypto and blockchain industry than ever before, with some experts predicting a repeat in the midterms. Following the 2024 elections, in which an estimated 270 lawmakers with favorable views on digital assets won seats in the US Congress, many cryptocurrency-affiliated organizations and political action committees show no signs of slowing their progress in the next significant election, the 2026 midterms. Likely boosted by advocacy work from organizations — such as the Coinbase-affiliated Stand With Crypto group and whose campaigns were supported by media buys from political action committees (PACs) — a majority of lawmakers in the 119th session of the US Congress took office in January having already expressed views signaling that they would support pro-crypto legislation and policies.  In the last year, some of Congress’s work supported that theory. The US House of Representatives passed three significant bills in July as part of the Republicans’ “Cry...

A coalition of corporate Bitcoin (BTC) holders announced the first members of the Treasury Council on Sept. 16, positioning themselves as advocates for federal Bitcoin adoption. The Treasury Council includes nine chief executives from companies holding Bitcoin in their corporate treasuries, led by Strategy CEO Phong Le, MARA Chairman Fred Thiel, and Riot CEO Jason […] The post Bitcoin advocates form ‘Treasury Council’ to push for corporate adoption in Congress appeared first on CryptoSlate.

According to some Republican lawmakers, the first crypto-related priority in the Senate will be to pass legislation for market structure. After a monthlong break, the US Senate and House of Representatives are scheduled to return to conducting government business, which includes key policies affecting the cryptocurrency and blockchain industry. Both chambers of the 119th session of the US Congress went on recess weeks ago as part of their schedule established in January. The move effectively paused any work toward passage of a bill to establish digital asset market structure, consider the nomination of Brian Quintenz to become chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and legislation containing a provision for restricting a central bank digital currency (CBDC). One of the first legislative items on Republicans’ agenda upon their return will be to pass a bill establishing crypto market structure out of a committee and for a floor vote. Read more

Trump Media and Technology Group, the parent company of Truth Social, revealed it has amassed roughly $2 billion worth of Bitcoin (BTC) and related digital assets, expanding on an investment strategy disclosed earlier this year. The company’s July 21 filing comes days after the U.S. House of Representatives advanced a trio of crypto bills, including […] The post Trump Media discloses $2B Bitcoin holdings as Congress approves key crypto legislation appeared first on CryptoSlate.

The House passed the GENIUS Act in a 307‑122 vote and sent the bill to President Donald Trump, who plans to sign it at a White House ceremony tomorrow, according to Galaxy head of research Alex Thorn.  The 307‑122 tally showed that more than 100 Democrats joined most Republicans to advance the measure, which differed […] The post Congress moves forward on digital asset regulations with GENIUS, CLARITY Acts appeared first on CryptoSlate.

The House has reversed Tuesday's defeat by passing a rule that advances the GENIUS Act, the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act and the Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act. President Trump's late night lobbying secured GOP unity and could deliver the stablecoin bill to his desk this week.   The post GENIUS Act, Anti-CBDC Act, and CLARITY Act Pass Procedural Vote in Congress appeared first on Cryptonews.

Discussions in the House Committee on Rules opened with crypto bills, but quickly shifted to the Department of Defense Appropriations Act. The US Congress kicked off what's been labeled as “crypto week” on Capitol Hill, with Republicans pushing digital asset legislation and Democrats framing the effort as a cover for crypto “corruption.” But instead of focusing on crypto, opening arguments quickly shifted to defense spending. In a Monday meeting of the US House Committee on Rules, Massachusetts Representative Jim McGovern used his opening statement to excoriate Republican lawmakers and President Donald Trump for their attempts to push through three crypto bills: the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins Act (GENIUS), the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (CLARITY), and the Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act. McGovern referred to the bills as the “GOP’s crypto giveaway,” criticizing the legislation for offering “weak and ineffective” regulatory solutions at the expense of investors.  Rea...

Crypto Week has become a defining stretch as House Republicans have scheduled votes on the GENIUS Act governing stablecoins, the CLARITY Act refining crypto market oversight, and the Anti-CBDC Surveillance Act, while Democrats have argued for stronger governance safeguards and broader review. The post Crypto Week in US Congress: What to Expect From the Biggest Push Yet appeared first on Cryptonews.

As Congress prepares to debate three major crypto bills during “Crypto Week,” the crypto community and advocacy groups are racing to turn momentum into real legislation. The US House of Representatives is gearing up for what Republican leadership has branded “Crypto Week,” a legislative push scheduled from next Monday to Friday that could reshape the future of digital asset regulation in the country. This week’s episode of Byte-Sized Insight explores the political stakes of these bills, the industry’s lobbying efforts and whether bipartisan support is enough to push legislation across the finish line. Lawmakers are expected to debate and potentially vote on three high-profile bills: the CLARITY Act, which would define regulatory oversight of crypto markets; the GENIUS Act, which creates a framework for stablecoins and has already cleared the Senate; and the Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act, which would ban the creation of a US central bank digital currency. Read more