Good morning and happy Friday. In an exciting week even by crypto standards, two House committees advanced market structure legislation and the Senate moved closer to passing its stablecoin bill.
Senate Moves Forward on GENIUS: Yesterday, 67 Senators, including 16 Democrats, voted to limit debate on passing the GENIUS Act, as amended, paving the way for a vote on final passage—likely next Tuesday.
Committees Markup CLARITY Act: On Tuesday, House Financial Services and Agriculture Committees advanced market structure legislation. House Financial Services advanced the bill by a 32-19 vote, with two Democrats joining Republicans in voting yes. House Agriculture advanced the bill by a 47-6 vote, with 18 Democrats joining Republicans in supporting the bill.
Senate Ag Hearing: The Senate Agriculture Committee held Brian Quintenz’s nomination hearing, a first step towards confirming the nominee as the next CFTC Chairman. Senators and Quintenz discussed his tech-forward approach to regulation, the importance of bipartisanship at the CFTC, prediction markets, and the CFTC staying focused on its core mission.
Senate Finance & Reconciliation: Senate Finance Committee may include crypto-related tax provisions in its reconciliation bill. CahillNXT tax partner Jason Schwartz breaks down the potential provisions and related concerns here:
Codifying A Crypto Executive Order: Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) introduced legislation to codify President Trump’s Executive Order 14233 to establish a strategic Bitcoin reserve and a digital asset stockpile.
Dark Web Interdiction Act: Senators Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and John Cornyn (R-TX) reintroduced legislation to combat drug trafficking on the dark web involving virtual currencies.
Staking & Mining Rewards: Reps. Zach Nunn (R-IA), Tom Emmer (R-MN), Bryan Steil (R-WI), and Byron Donalds (R-FL) sent a letter to the Treasury Secretary and IRS Commissioner, urging the IRS to update tax guidance to ensure digital asset rewards are taxable only when an individual or business sells or exchanges them.
Rule Withdrawals: On Thursday, the SEC withdrew a series of proposed rules under Chair Gensler’s tenure that were never finalized, including proposals to expand the definition of exchange and custody rules.
DeFi Roundtable: On Monday, the SEC held a roundtable on DeFi. Here are key points from SEC Chair Paul Atkins’ remarks.
Tornado Cash: The DeFi Education Fund and Coin Center teamed up in filing an expert opinion in a Tornado Cash developer’s trial.
Senate
A Senate vote on passing the GENIUS Act is expected for Tuesday.
PGP
PGP for Crypto - Breakfast & Roundtable: Tuesday, June 17 - 9AM-11:30AM.
Last Week’s A: The first company listed on the New York Stock Exchange was the Bank of New York.
This Week’s Q: Who leads the all-time Congressional Baseball Game series?
Thanks for reading, and enjoy your weekend.
-GSL
P.S. Sign up for Pro for legislative tracking and in-depth analysis.
In Pro this week: Analysis of recent updates to GENIUS; revised side-by-side memo comparing and contrasting STABLE and GENIUS; analysis of House CLARITY markups; full summary of Senate Ag nomination hearing.
394
Two House committees advanced market structure bills, and the Senate teed up a final vote on the GENIUS Act for next Tuesday. Here’s a quick recap of an eventful week for crypto on the Hill: