Potential Approval of Market Structure Bill for Cryptocurrencies? Senator Tim Scott Indicates Closely Contested Vote
The Senate is currently working on the Responsible Financial Innovation Act of 2025 (RFIA), a draft legislation aimed at clarifying the crypto market structure and regulatory oversight. However, no final bill has been passed as of August 2025.
The House of Representatives passed a related bill, the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (CLARITY Act), in July 2025. The CLARA Act focuses more on empowering the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and classifying digital assets as commodities, marking significant differences from the Senate’s approach.
Coordination between the Senate's Banking and Agriculture Committees on jurisdiction remains unfinished. The Senate Banking Committee, chaired by Sen. Tim Scott, is expected to present a unified bill on the Senate floor once both committees have reconciled jurisdictional overlaps.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) is considered a key obstacle to the passage of the crypto market structure legislation in the Senate. Warren has expressed strong concerns about how crypto regulation should proceed, likely opposing elements of the Senate draft or the overall deregulatory approach advocated by some Republicans and industry groups.
Warren's concerns revolve around consumer protection and regulatory robustness, making her a principal Democratic opponent influencing the bill's prospects. This stance complicates obtaining the bipartisan consensus needed for the Senate legislation to pass, especially given the Senate Banking Committee's GOP leadership pushing for a bill by late September 2025.
Sen. Tim Scott estimates that the upcoming crypto market structure legislation may only have between 12 and 18 Democratic supporters. If the Senate passes a crypto market structure bill, seven Democrats would need to join all 53 Republicans to pass it. Interestingly, 18 Democrats broke with their party to pass the Generating Anticipated Revenues from Digital Yields Act (GENIUS Act) in June.
The GENIUS Act, a landmark bill establishing a federal framework for issuing and trading stablecoins, was signed into law by President Donald Trump last month. Sen. Elizabeth Warren has been vocal in her opposition to the GENIUS Act, framing its potential risks as more far-reaching and existential than those posed by the GENIUS Act.
Warren's criticisms of the more far-reaching market structure bill have been more pointed. Her analysis states that the bill would provide a superhighway for traditional securities to escape the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) authority, fundamentally upending the regulatory framework that has governed capital markets for nearly a century.
Sen. Tim Scott spoke at the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium in Jackson Hole, addressing the challenges posed by Warren's protests against the bill. Scott is currently working to get other Democrats off the Senate Banking Committee to support the crypto market structure legislation.
In summary, the Senate's crypto market structure legislation is still in the draft stage, with Sen. Elizabeth Warren's concerns about consumer protection and regulatory robustness making her a principal Democratic opponent influencing the bill's prospects. The House has already passed a related bill, the CLARITY Act, in July 2025, but the Senate still faces the challenge of obtaining bipartisan consensus and addressing jurisdictional overlaps between committees.
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