Senate Banking Chair Tim Scott announced on Tuesday that he aims to hold committee votes on a bitcoin market structure bill in December, with hopes of advancing the legislation to the Senate floor in early 2026 for President Trump’s signature.
Legislative timeline and priorities
Scott emphasized the urgency of the bill in an appearance on Fox Business, stating that both the Senate Banking and Agriculture committees should mark up and vote on the legislation by the end of the year.
The proposed law seeks to protect consumers and reinforce U.S. economic leadership. Scott voiced concerns about delays, attributing them to Democratic opposition:
“The Democrats have been stalling and stalling and stalling because they don’t want President Trump to make America the crypto capital of the world. It’s not just for President Trump, it’s for the American people.”
Committee collaboration and bill details
The legislation requires cooperation between both the Banking and Agriculture committees due to its implications for securities and commodities oversight.
The Republican-led effort aims to clarify the jurisdiction between the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and introduce the term “ancillary assets” to help determine which digital assets are not securities. Advancing the bill will require some Democratic support.
Bipartisan negotiations and industry response
Recent bipartisan talks have included a leaked proposal from Senate Democrats focused on decentralized finance (DeFi), assigning the Treasury and other agencies the role of defining control and influence within DeFi projects.
The draft met with criticism from industry representatives.
Following this, both parties met separately with industry leaders. Kristin Smith, president of the Solana Policy Institute, commented on the Democratic caucus:
“There is a group of Democratic Senators that want to get this done.”
House and Senate bills compared
The Senate is working on this new market structure bill after the House passed its own version, the CLARITY Act, earlier in the summer.
The process highlights the ongoing debate over how to regulate bitcoin markets in the U.S.
