White House Tells CLARITY Act: Develop Good Faith or Develop Elsewhere 🏛️

The White House is set to host law enforcement officials on Wednesday, June 10, to address concerns over the CLARITY Act, with developer protections under the Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act (BRCA) at the center of the talks. According to journalist Eleanor Terrett, citing people familiar with the matter, the meeting will focus on provisions that officials say "could make it harder to combat illicit finance," particularly language that would shield non-custodial platform developers from being treated as money transmitters. Terrett reported that "several Democrats have signaled they will not support the legislation unless law enforcement believes its concerns have been adequately addressed."

White House crypto chief advisor Patrick Witt framed the week as a pivotal one for the market structure bill, writing, "Big week ahead for Clarity. The work has continued in earnest behind the scenes since the Banking markup. The issue set has narrowed, and good faith offers are being put forward to close the gap. But time is of the essence." The BRCA aims to ensure that wrongdoing on decentralized platforms is directed at third-party perpetrators rather than builders, a question that gained urgency from the prosecution of Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm. Over 160 law enforcement officials recently backed the bill, though the exact shape of any developer protection compromise remains unclear.

Industry pressure on the Senate has intensified in parallel. In a joint letter dated June 7, more than 200 crypto organizations and firms — including Stand With Crypto, the Blockchain Association, the Crypto Council for Innovation, and The Digital Chamber — urged Senate leaders John Thune and Chuck Schumer to schedule the bill for a floor vote. The letter stated, "The Senate should now build on that momentum and give members the opportunity to advance durable market structure legislation," and warned that "the question before Congress is whether that future will be built in the United States — under U.S. law, U.S. oversight, and American values — or continue moving to offshore jurisdictions." Senator Cynthia Lummis, one of Congress' most prominent crypto advocates, wrote, "The CLARITY Act passed committee. The floor is next."

The House also officially unveiled crypto tax proposals aimed at addressing double taxation on crypto miners and stakers, among other issues. Witt described the developments as a dual victory, writing, "Clarity for market structure, Parity for tax. Great work." The stablecoin yield provisions, however, remain a sticking point. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon said last month that banks would "fight" parts of the legislation on stablecoin regulation, arguing that crypto firms offering payment and deposit-like services should face banking-style oversight requirements including equivalent liquidity, AML, capital, and consumer protection obligations. Ethics provisions tied to the stablecoin discussion also remain unresolved given the Trump family's interests in the sector, and as of writing the market was 50/50 on the bill's passage by the end of the year.