The Senate Banking Committee, led by Senators Tim Scott, Cynthia Lummis, Bill Hagerty, and Bernie Moreno, released an updated draft of the crypto market structure bill on September 5, 2025. This legislation aims to establish clear regulatory frameworks for digital assets in the United States, addressing overlapping duties between the SEC and CFTC.
The bill includes unprecedented developer and validator protections, with Amanda Tuminelli, Head of Legal & Policy at Silvergate, calling it "the best developer protections language we have seen to date." The legislation builds on previous efforts like the House's 2025 CLARITY Act and seeks to redefine asset classifications, particularly for "ancillary assets."
Immediate effects are expected on major cryptocurrencies like ETH and BTC regarding their regulatory classification. The bill could lead to shifts in Total Value Locked (TVL) across protocols, changes in liquidity and staking flows, and potentially increased institutional involvement. The committee has issued a Request for Information with comments due by August 5, 2025, before further advancement.