Crypto Market Structure Legislation Faces a Summer Deadline
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Noa Ashworth
Ripple XRP SEC · Apr 15, 2026
Source: DojiDoji Data Terminal
Digital assets currently operate in a regulatory grey zone where regulators use enforcement actions rather than written rules. The CLARITY Act seeks to change this by establishing clear rules to distinguish whether a digital asset is a security or a commodity.
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse recently met with Senators Hagerty, Bernie Moreno, Tim Scott, John Boozman, and Patrick Witt to advocate for the bill's passage. Senator Hagerty, a key champion of the legislation, stated that the bill could clear the Banking Committee and reach the full Senate floor before the end of April.
However, the legislative timeline is tight. No confirmed markup session is scheduled for the Senate Banking Committee next week, shifting the next realistic window for progress to the week of April 27.
If the bill stalls into summer, senators typically shift their focus toward midterm election positioning, which often results in the shelving of legislation lacking broad bipartisan urgency. Ron Hammond, Head of Policy at market maker Wintermute, puts the odds of the bill passing in 2026 at 30%. Attorney John Deaton warns that if the bill stalls until summer, the window for passage does not just narrow; it closes.
Ripple XRP SECcrypto regulation billstablecoin US legislation
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