A proposed piece of U.S. legislation, the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, could fundamentally reshape the regulatory landscape for several major cryptocurrencies. The bill, as reported by journalist Eleanor Terrett, stipulates that starting January 1, 2026, digital assets that serve as the primary backing for exchange-traded products (ETPs) like ETFs will be classified as non-ancillary assets and exempt from certain standard disclosure requirements.
This classification, currently enjoyed by Bitcoin and Ethereum due to their existing ETF approvals, would be extended to a list of altcoins. The tokens explicitly named in reports include XRP, Solana (SOL), Litecoin (LTC), Hedera (HBAR), Dogecoin (DOGE), and Chainlink (LINK). The reclassification is contingent on the token being the main asset of an ETF listed on a national securities exchange.
The primary impact is regulatory clarity and legitimacy. By placing these altcoins in the same regulatory "bucket" as Bitcoin and Ethereum for ETF purposes, the bill aims to level the playing field. This could significantly reduce uncertainty for institutional investors and exchanges, potentially paving the way for a new wave of altcoin-based ETF applications and attracting greater institutional capital into these assets.
In related developments, an incomplete draft of the Senate Banking Committee's broader market structure bill has surfaced. This draft notably omits a previously contentious section on stablecoin yield. However, it includes ethics provisions and, in Section 601, a compromise focused on protecting software developers. This provision addresses concerns from traditional finance entities like the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) about regulatory arbitrage in decentralized finance (DeFi), signaling progress in bridging the TradFi and DeFi sectors.
The successful passage of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act remains pending congressional approval. Its progression, however, marks a significant step toward more inclusive crypto regulation in the United States, recognizing the expanding digital asset ecosystem beyond just Bitcoin and Ethereum.
