On Thursday, Senate Republicans published a revised version of the Clarity Act, aiming at crypto trading protocols they refer to as “decentralized-in-name-only.”. The updated 630-page legislation would mandate that non-decentralized protocols—those run by individuals or organizations—register with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R., Wyo.) unveiled the new text ahead of a September 15 procedural vote on the bill, which seeks to establish a federal framework for digital assets and clarify which agency regulates what.
“Let’s get this done!”
What the New Draft Changes
The amended measure instructs the CFTC and the Treasury to establish regulations governing trading systems that individuals or entities can manage or significantly modify. It additionally confines the DeFi provisions to spot and cash dealings.
She wrote on X that the revisions respond to “Native American concerns about prediction markets.”, and Lummis said the update reflects “bipartisan hard work over August”, including more than 100 changes requested by Democrats.
The rules on conduct stay much the same from the July draft. They still bar public officials, employees and their spouses from putting out or backing digital assets.
The Push for Democratic Support
Politico reports that Democrats have pushed for tighter controls on President Donald Trump’s crypto holdings, yet no one is backing the proposed measure.
Lummis urged Democrats to back the legislation, arguing it incorporates their demands. “They demanded the felony bar on fraudsters, $150M for the CFTC, the crackdown on platforms like Binance, and they got almost everything they asked for,” she said on X.
“Now they need to vote for the bill they built. Anything less is walking away from their own work,” Lummis added.
Lobbying Heats Up
Stand With Crypto says its supporters reached out to members of Congress nearly 50,000 times in August. The group describes a pushback from community bankers who want changes to the rewards provisions. That puts the dispute over stablecoin yield provisions outside Washington now.
The long-awaited crypto bill’s fate rests on the September 15 procedural vote, which many see as an all-or-nothing test.
Once it becomes law, the Clarity Act would legalize most cryptocurrency activity across the country, establish where the CFTC and the SEC each hold authority, and largely remove the barriers that have kept crypto startups from raising funds through token sales once more.
Democrats hold the bill’s fate in their hands, and they must judge for themselves if the alterations Lummis claims they requested are sufficient to secure their support.
- Bill length: 630 pages
- Procedural vote: September 15
- CFTC funding requested: $150 million
- Constituent contacts in August: Nearly 50,000
Source: decrypt.co
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