CLARITY Act 2026: What New Digital Asset Rules Mean for Banks

9 mins mins

The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025, also known as H.R. 3633, has moved into a new phase in 2026. The House passed the bill on July 17, 2025 by a 294-134 vote, according to Congress.gov. On May 14, 2026, the Senate Banking Committee advanced the bill and sent it toward the Senate floor.

That procedural update replaces the older draft-stage framing. The bill now has momentum, but it still has several steps left before enactment. The Senate may amend the text, the House and Senate may need to reconcile differences, and agencies would still need rulemaking before many requirements become operational.

CLARITY Act 2026: What New Digital Asset Rules Mean for Banks

The latest Senate text is broader than a simple market-structure bill. The 309-page Senate substitute text covers responsible securities innovation, illicit finance, decentralized finance, bank digital asset activities, payment stablecoins, software developer protections, customer property, and digital asset education.

Coincu previously covered how the CLARITY Act boosted confidence in crypto regulation after House action. The 2026 update is more bank-focused because the Senate version gives more attention to regulated financial institutions.

Key Takeaways

– H.R. 3633, the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025, advanced from the Senate Banking Committee by a 15-9 vote on May 14, 2026.

– The bill is not law yet. It still needs full Senate action, potential amendments, House-Senate reconciliation, and final approval.

– Banks should watch digital asset permissions, stablecoins, custody, anti-money-laundering controls, and intermediary standards.

– The bill seeks to define the SEC-CFTC split, but investor-protection and state-regulator concerns remain unresolved.

Why the CLARITY Act matters more for banks now

Banks have not been waiting only for crypto prices or customer demand. Their bigger issue has been legal permission. Without clear statutory authority and supervisory expectations, compliance teams often have limited room to approve digital asset products at scale.

The CLARITY Act speaks directly to that problem. Title IV, labeled Responsible Banking Innovation, addresses permissible digital asset activities, portfolio margining, capital treatment tied to netting agreements, and restrictions around stablecoin yield.

This matters because banks need more than a market narrative. They need auditable permission for custody, tokenized deposits, digital asset settlement, and relationships with exchanges or brokers. Coincu’s coverage of SEC custody rule changes shows why custody policy can quickly affect institutional participation.

Quick table: what banks should track

Issue	Why it matters for banks	Current 2026 status
Digital asset permissions	Determines whether banks can offer crypto custody, settlement, or tokenized services	Addressed in Senate text but still not final law
Stablecoin yield	Affects whether stablecoins compete with deposits as yield-bearing instruments	Covered in the bill and debated by banking groups
SEC and CFTC jurisdiction	Shapes token classification, exchange registration, and counterparty due diligence	Core goal of the bill, but details depend on final text
Intermediary standards	Sets expectations for exchanges, brokers, dealers, custodians, and kiosks	Included in the Senate framework
AML and sanctions	Determines whether crypto firms meet bank-grade compliance expectations	Overlaps with Treasury and Bank Secrecy Act implementation

How the bill divides SEC and CFTC oversight

The CLARITY Act attempts to resolve one of the largest disputes in U.S. crypto regulation: which assets and activities fall under the Securities and Exchange Commission and which fall under the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

The Senate framework follows the same broad direction described in the Senate Banking CLARITY Act fact sheet: securities-like activity remains closer to SEC oversight, while digital commodity market activity would receive clearer CFTC treatment.

That split matters for banks because it affects due diligence, trading relationships, custody models, disclosure standards, and the legal analysis of token-linked products. Coincu has followed this agency coordination through the SEC and CFTC unified crypto regulation initiative, the SEC-CFTC crypto regulatory roundtable, and later coordinated crypto regulation roundtables.

The SEC’s own Crypto Task Force roundtables show that agency rulemaking and market consultation remain central even if Congress passes a statute. The CFTC also maintains a digital assets resource page for market participants and customers.

Stablecoin yield remains the most bank-sensitive issue

One of the most bank-sensitive parts of the 2026 debate is payment stablecoin yield. Section 404 of the Senate text addresses interest and yield on payment stablecoins, a topic closely tied to deposit competition.

The Conference of State Bank Supervisors warned in January 2026 that indirect yield arrangements could weaken the purpose of stablecoin interest restrictions if affiliates or partners can pay rewards in ways that resemble deposit yield.

That concern connects with Treasury’s separate stablecoin work. The U.S. Treasury said in April 2026 that it proposed rules to implement GENIUS Act illicit finance requirements for permitted payment stablecoin issuers.

Coincu also covered the Treasury AML and sanctions proposal for stablecoin issuers, the earlier Treasury stablecoin rulemaking process, and stablecoin interest restrictions under the GENIUS Act.

Federal Reserve commentary also matters here. In a 2025 speech on stablecoins and monetary policy, Governor Stephen Miran argued that GENIUS Act payment stablecoins do not offer yield and are not backed by federal deposit insurance, reducing the risk of broad domestic deposit flight.

What centralized intermediaries need to prepare for

Centralized crypto intermediaries are a major target of the bill. The Senate text includes provisions for digital asset intermediaries, Bank Secrecy Act, examination standards, risk management, digital asset kiosks, and customer property protections.

For banks, stronger intermediary standards could make counterparty review easier. A bank working with a crypto exchange, broker, dealer, or custodian needs to verify disclosures, sanctions screening, cybersecurity, asset segregation, bankruptcy treatment, and customer property controls.

This is why the CLARITY Act should be read together with broader compliance policy. Coincu’s coverage of the Coinbase Bank Secrecy Act proposal shows how crypto firms are already pushing for modernized compliance tools, while Coincu’s report on SEC crypto regulation under Chairman Atkins shows the market shift from enforcement-heavy policy toward structured rulemaking.

Investor-protection concerns have not disappeared

The strongest criticism of the CLARITY Act is that clearer rules could become weaker rules if definitions are drafted too broadly. In a January 2026 letter, NASAA said it could not support the bill in its then-current form.

NASAA’s concern centers on whether the bill’s asset definitions and treatment of investment contracts could make it harder for regulators to respond to fraud and abuse. For banks, that concern is practical. Legal clarity is only useful if it survives supervision, enforcement, litigation, and customer-protection review.

Former CFTC Chair Timothy Massad has also warned that market-structure legislation should avoid undermining existing securities law. The bill’s challenge is to create new digital asset pathways without weakening the investor-protection framework that banks and regulated markets already rely on.

What banks should watch next

The next decision point is the full Senate process. Amendments could affect DeFi treatment, state preemption, ethics rules, digital asset kiosk limits, software developer protections, and bank activity permissions.

Banks should focus on five practical questions:

Which digital asset activities would be clearly permissible for insured banks, national banks, trust companies, and bank affiliates?
How will stablecoin yield restrictions apply to issuers, affiliates, wallets, exchanges, and business partners?
Which counterparties will need SEC or CFTC registration, and what transition rules will apply?
How will customer asset custody and bankruptcy protections be implemented?
Will state authority over money transmission, consumer protection, and digital asset kiosks be preserved or preempted?

Until final passage, banks are likely to keep preparing rather than launching aggressively. Legal teams can map proposed activities to the Senate text, compliance teams can assess counterparty gaps, and product teams can identify which services depend on agency rulemaking.

Conclusion

The CLARITY Act has become one of the most important U.S. crypto policy developments of 2026. Its latest milestone is procedural but meaningful: the Senate Banking Committee advanced the bill and moved it closer to a full Senate vote.

For banks, the bill’s value is not simply that it is pro-crypto or anti-crypto. Its importance lies in whether it can turn uncertain digital asset activity into defined, supervised, and auditable financial services activity.

If the final law preserves investor protection, clarifies jurisdiction, limits deposit-like stablecoin risks, and gives banks workable authority, it could open the door to broader institutional participation. For now, the CLARITY Act is best read as a near-term policy roadmap, not a finished rulebook.

FAQ about the CLARITY Act and banks

Is the CLARITY Act law in 2026?

No. As of May 17, 2026, H.R. 3633 has passed the House and advanced out of the Senate Banking Committee, but it has not passed the full Senate or become law.

What changed on May 14, 2026?

The Senate Banking Committee advanced H.R. 3633 by a 15-9 vote and sent the bill toward the Senate floor. This replaced the older status in which the bill was still waiting for committee action.

Why do banks care about the CLARITY Act?

Banks care because the bill addresses digital asset activity permissions, stablecoin yield restrictions, SEC-CFTC oversight, anti-money-laundering expectations, custody, and digital asset intermediary standards. These areas directly affect whether banks can offer or support digital asset services.

Does the bill give the CFTC more crypto authority?

Yes. The CLARITY Act would give the CFTC a clearer role over digital commodity markets, while the SEC would retain authority over securities-related digital asset activity. The exact boundary depends on final statutory language and later rulemaking.

What is the main risk for banks?

The main risk is that final rules may still change. Banks must also consider whether stablecoin yield, custody, counterparty compliance, customer asset protection, and state regulatory authority are handled clearly enough for supervisory approval.

Methodology

This article was updated on May 17, 2026 using primary and high-relevance public sources. The update checks the bill’s latest procedural status, compares the current Senate position with the older article, and replaces outdated claims with 2026 information.

Primary sources reviewed include Congress.gov’s H.R. 3633 tracker, the Senate Banking Committee’s May 14, 2026 announcement, the Senate’s May 2026 substitute text, NASAA’s January 2026 letter, CSBS’s January 2026 letter, Treasury’s 2026 stablecoin rulemaking announcement, SEC Crypto Task Force materials, CFTC digital asset resources, and Federal Reserve commentary on stablecoins.

References

Congress.gov: https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/3633

Senate Banking Committee announcement: https://www.banking.senate.gov/newsroom/majority/chairman-scott-senate-banking-committee-advance-clarity-act-in-historic-bipartisan-vote

Senate May 2026 bill text: https://www.banking.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/ehf26374.pdf

Senate Banking CLARITY Act fact sheet: https://www.banking.senate.gov/newsroom/majority/the-facts-the-clarity-act

NASAA January 2026 letter: https://www.nasaa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/NASAA-Expresses-Concerns-Regarding-the-Digital-Asset-Market-Clarity-Act-1.13.26-F.pdf

CSBS January 2026 letter: https://www.csbs.org/sites/default/files/external-link-files/CSBS%20Digital%20Assets%20Market%20Clarity%20Act%201-14-2025.pdf

Treasury GENIUS Act illicit finance rulemaking: https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sb0435

SEC Crypto Task Force roundtables: https://www.sec.gov/featured-topics/crypto-task-force/crypto-task-force-roundtables

CFTC digital assets resources: https://www.cftc.gov/Bitcoin

Federal Reserve stablecoins speech: https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/speech/miran20251107a.htm

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