Senator Thom Tillis has urged Senate Banking Chair Tim Scott to move the CLARITY Act markup from April to May to give more time for banking and crypto stakeholders to work through a key disagreement over stablecoin yield rules. The request, reported by Punchbowl News, reflects weeks of negotiations that Tillis has been leading between the two camps.
Tillis told reporters he does not expect the committee to proceed in April and favors postponing the markup to allow all parties to be heard and to reach a sound compromise. He has emphasized the importance of avoiding a rushed outcome and of giving negotiators a rational basis for any agreement.
There is pressure on timing: some observers worry the bill may not clear Congress before November’s midterm elections if talks lag. U.S. Treasury official Scott Bessent warned in March that an electoral shift—specifically Democrats retaking the House—could derail prospects for a deal.
Advocacy groups are pressing for speed. The Digital Chamber sent a letter to the Senate Banking Committee urging a markup “as soon as the calendar allows,” noting it has been more than 270 days since the House passed the CLARITY Act with bipartisan support and arguing regulatory certainty is urgent for the tens of millions of Americans using digital assets.
The central sticking point is whether stablecoin holders should be allowed to earn yields. Banking groups contend that permitting such yields could prompt sizeable deposit outflows from traditional banks, threatening liquidity at community banks that may not have the balance-sheet flexibility to handle large withdrawals without resorting to costlier funding. The industry has pushed for tighter restrictions to protect deposit stability.
Crypto industry leaders, including Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, have advocated for more permissive language. Negotiators were reported to be close to a compromise that would permit certain stablecoin rewards tied to active crypto activity on third-party platforms while excluding rewards on passive balances held at banks.
Some in the crypto sector say advancing the legislation, even if it isn’t perfect, is preferable to continued delay because any regulatory framework would be better than continued uncertainty. With the Senate markup now expected in May, stakeholders are racing to finalize statutory language and reconcile competing protections for depositors and the crypto ecosystem.
For now, the bill’s timeline hinges on whether negotiators can bridge the remaining gaps in the coming weeks and whether committee leaders accept Tillis’s recommendation to postpone the markup to allow more thorough deliberation.