Greg Xethalis
@xethalis
GC @Multicoin. Board @nakamoto @BlockchainAssn @fund_defi FLAA. Lecturing Fellow @DukeLaw. Opinions are my own. Not a solicitation / offer for advisory services
1.4K Following 7.6K Followers
1/ Yesterday’s bipartisan vote on the Clarity Act was a historic step forward. But digesting 309 pages of technical legislation – how’s that going to work!?
To help everyone dig in, we developed in interactive map of Title 1: Come play!
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Strive is a structured finance company and institutional asset manager focused on disciplined capital allocation and long-term value creation.
Proud to celebrate $ASST! #NasdaqListed#
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Rebecca’s first crush was DeFi. Now we know her second.
I call 'em like I see 'em: @LeaderJohnThune is our person of the week on @CoinDesk's The Policy Protocol w the incomparable @renato_mariotti . We need Sen. Thune to get Clarity to the Senate floor 🇺🇸, but have to recognize the Silver Fox for all that he brings to the table 😉
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If we are to speak in one voice, be it in the voice of @SenatorHagerty.
This is a huge day for @SenLummis (and @SenGillibrand) who have worked so hard for the last four years to bring the Senate to where we are on CLARITY. The bill is pretty darn good. Time for the Banking Committee to advance the bill and move to the floor.
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At 10:30 ET, the Banking Committee will mark up its portion of CLARITY. Bipartisan negotiation maintained the core growth drivers & the BRCA, while addressing consumer and investor protection priorities of both caucuses. We strongly advocate advancing the bill with a Yes vote.
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Today, the Senate Banking Committee will vote to advance the CLARITY Act.
I am proud of the countless hours that my team, Treasury, SEC, CFTC, and Senate Banking staff and members have put into shaping this product. On every issue, we put forward real solutions to address stakeholder concerns or Democrat demands. It often required us to get creative; sometimes, it required us to get uncomfortable. But we did it in the spirit of bipartisanship.
Make no mistake: Whether today’s vote is partisan or bipartisan will depend entirely on politics, not policy. The CLARITY Act is not only good policy, it is necessary policy for the United States to maintain our leadership position in global financial markets. Not to mention the robust consumer protections and anti-illicit finance provisions it contains, without which, there are none.
This morning’s vote will reveal whether Democrats have genuinely moved on from their war on crypto, or whether they remain cowed by Elizabeth Warren. The choice is theirs.
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Friendly reminder to contact your Senator before 10:30am ET *tomorrow* and urge them to protect software developers and DeFi 🤏
DEF is tracking anti-DeFi amendments.
Ahead of the Senate Banking Committee markup of the Clarity Act, Senators submit amendments to be considered and voted on. Importantly, not every amendment will be considered, which means we have a timely opportunity to urge Senators to oppose amendments that could harm DeFi technology, developers, and users.
Here are the amendments you should ask your Senators to oppose*:
➡️ Amendment #16#, Senator Cortez Masto. [Re-writes the BRCA to turn it from a shield to a sword against developers]
➡️ Amendment #17#. Senator Cortez Masto. [Strikes protections for non-controlling developers in Section 302]
➡️ Amendment #22#, Senator Cortez Masto. [Strikes protections for non-controlling developers in Section 301]
➡️ Amendment #24#, Senator Kim. [Expands the definition of a “financial institution” in 31 USC 5312 to include digital asset businesses]
➡️ Amendment #27#, Senator Kim. [Expands BSA/AML obligations and certification requirements for "covered businesses" to “prevent illicit finance” through decentralized financial services platforms]
➡️ Amendment #32#, Senator Van Hollen. [Expands application of criminal code to DeFi developers who publish, distribute, deploy, administer, or constitute code that “facilitates” crime or who act with “reckless disregard for a substantial risk” the DeFi trading protocol is used in connection with a violation of 1956, 1957, 1960, or 2339C]
➡️ Amendment #33#, Senator Van Hollen. [Prohibits publishing, distributing, deploying, or constituting a DeFi trading protocol “for the purpose of facilitating” a violation of 1956, 1957, 1960, or 2339C]
➡️ Amendment #67#, Senator Warren. “...would exempt certain software developers identified in the White House digital assets report and address vulnerabilities to protect national security”
➡️ Amendment #69#, Senator Warren. “...would define financial institutions under anti-money laundering law”
➡️ Amendment #70#, Senator Warren. “...would establish tailored anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism responsibilities for certain DeFi front-ends”
➡️ Amendment #71#, Senator Warren. “...would establish tailored anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism responsibilities for certain DeFi businesses”
➡️ Amendment #72#, Senator Warren. “...would establish tailored anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism responsibilities for certain DeFi businesses”
➡️ Amendment #73#, Senator Warren. “...would close the tokenization loopholes”
➡️ Amendment #89#, Senator Reed. [Direct attack on Van Loon - 5th Circuit federal court decision - by subjecting smart contracts to sanctions “without regard to whether such contracts operate autonomously, can be modified, or are owned”]
➡️ Amendment #92#, Senator Reed. [Expands the application of the BSA by broadening the definition of "financial institution" to include digital asset companies and developers]
➡️ Amendment #94#, Senator Reed. [Eliminates BRCA from Clarity Act]
*The amendment text is not yet public. Bracketed language is DEF’s description based on text the DEF team reviewed; language in quotes is the Senators’ original description, which suggests a threat to DeFi.
The DEF team will keep track of these amendments during Thursday’s markup, and will share updates on X. Stay tuned!
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RT @crypto_council: The following statement is attributed to @crypto_council CEO @_JiKim and @blockchainassn CEO @SummerMersinger in respo…
We agree with @AARP: Congress should protect consumers from scams while giving law enforcement stronger tools to act.
The Clarity Act does both—strengthening oversight of digital asset kiosks and preserving prosecutors’ authority to pursue criminal activity.
Claims that the Clarity Act does not do enough to address fraud are unfounded. @AARP, one of the country’s leading consumer advocacy organizations, is actively supporting provisions in the bill designed to combat scams and protect vulnerable Americans. 👇
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Clarity Act Title III ("Responsible Innovation in Decentralized Finance") was added to the Clarity Act to address concerns related to illicit finance and digital assets. It did not exist in the September draft. It was specifically added in response to concerns raised by prosecutors/law enforcement, to provide even more tools than were already in Title II ("Protecting Against Illicit Finance").
Anyone saying this bill does not give enough tools or runway for law enforcement to go after bad actors should *actually read* read Title II or Title III.
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The CLARITY Act is pro-innovation, pro-consumer protection, and pro-America.
It's as simple as that.
📣Speaker Announcement: @RepDustyJohnson will take the stage June 16 at Solana Summit Chicago: Washington x Wall Street.
Rep. Johnson was a key architect of the CLARITY Act. He’ll share why getting market structure right is critical for US competitiveness.
Register now:
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Tomorrow’s markup of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act is a monumental step in making the U.S. the Crypto Capital of the World and maintaining America’s leadership in innovation. I applaud Chairman @SenatorTimScott and the Senate Banking Committee for working so hard to craft the necessary compromises to advance this legislation. At a staff level, I also want to thank White House crypto director @patrickjwitt for helping us get to this point. Finally I want to thank the crypto industry for its efforts. There are roughly 50 million people in the U.S. who own or use crypto. This legislation will ensure that this ecosystem can innovate and flourish for years to come.
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DEF is tracking anti-DeFi amendments.
Ahead of the Senate Banking Committee markup of the Clarity Act, Senators submit amendments to be considered and voted on. Importantly, not every amendment will be considered, which means we have a timely opportunity to urge Senators to oppose amendments that could harm DeFi technology, developers, and users.
Here are the amendments you should ask your Senators to oppose*:
➡️ Amendment #16#, Senator Cortez Masto. [Re-writes the BRCA to turn it from a shield to a sword against developers]
➡️ Amendment #17#. Senator Cortez Masto. [Strikes protections for non-controlling developers in Section 302]
➡️ Amendment #22#, Senator Cortez Masto. [Strikes protections for non-controlling developers in Section 301]
➡️ Amendment #24#, Senator Kim. [Expands the definition of a “financial institution” in 31 USC 5312 to include digital asset businesses]
➡️ Amendment #27#, Senator Kim. [Expands BSA/AML obligations and certification requirements for "covered businesses" to “prevent illicit finance” through decentralized financial services platforms]
➡️ Amendment #32#, Senator Van Hollen. [Expands application of criminal code to DeFi developers who publish, distribute, deploy, administer, or constitute code that “facilitates” crime or who act with “reckless disregard for a substantial risk” the DeFi trading protocol is used in connection with a violation of 1956, 1957, 1960, or 2339C]
➡️ Amendment #33#, Senator Van Hollen. [Prohibits publishing, distributing, deploying, or constituting a DeFi trading protocol “for the purpose of facilitating” a violation of 1956, 1957, 1960, or 2339C]
➡️ Amendment #67#, Senator Warren. “...would exempt certain software developers identified in the White House digital assets report and address vulnerabilities to protect national security”
➡️ Amendment #69#, Senator Warren. “...would define financial institutions under anti-money laundering law”
➡️ Amendment #70#, Senator Warren. “...would establish tailored anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism responsibilities for certain DeFi front-ends”
➡️ Amendment #71#, Senator Warren. “...would establish tailored anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism responsibilities for certain DeFi businesses”
➡️ Amendment #72#, Senator Warren. “...would establish tailored anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism responsibilities for certain DeFi businesses”
➡️ Amendment #73#, Senator Warren. “...would close the tokenization loopholes”
➡️ Amendment #89#, Senator Reed. [Direct attack on Van Loon - 5th Circuit federal court decision - by subjecting smart contracts to sanctions “without regard to whether such contracts operate autonomously, can be modified, or are owned”]
➡️ Amendment #92#, Senator Reed. [Expands the application of the BSA by broadening the definition of "financial institution" to include digital asset companies and developers]
➡️ Amendment #94#, Senator Reed. [Eliminates BRCA from Clarity Act]
*The amendment text is not yet public. Bracketed language is DEF’s description based on text the DEF team reviewed; language in quotes is the Senators’ original description, which suggests a threat to DeFi.
The DEF team will keep track of these amendments during Thursday’s markup, and will share updates on X. Stay tuned!
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some say the US needs CLARITY to solidify its dominance in digital assets
the reality is we are not dominating today
less than 10% of spot and less than 2% of futures volume is in the USA. we're behind
we need to step up or the future of capital markets could be build abroad
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This is a defining moment for American leadership.
@blockchainassn & @crypto_council urge members of Senate Banking to support this legislation and work toward a final, bipartisan framework that ensures the US leads the next generation of financial innovation.
Read our letter:
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