CLARITY Act faces pushback as banks and DeFi clash

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Yaroslav Dmytrenko

17.01.2026

CLARITY Act faces pushback as banks and DeFi clash — US Congress delays CLARITY Act amid digital asset market debate

The adoption of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (CLARITY Act) in the US Congress has been delayed, as lawmakers acknowledge that its impact on digital asset markets is global and requires careful consideration of the interests of financial market participants.

After the CLARITY Act failed to pass on January 15 and was postponed until the end of the month following opposition from Coinbase, it became clear even to neutral observers that the bill is turning into a tool in an intense struggle for control over yield between traditional banks and decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols.

Due to provisions tightening rules on stablecoin rewards, critics—including stablecoin issuers and institutional DeFi platforms—warned that the bill risks exporting blockchain-based credit activity abroad rather than improving its safety within the United States.

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong stated that it is better to have “no bill than a bad bill,” while Variant Fund’s Chief Legal Officer Jake Chervinsky said that CLARITY is the kind of legislation that “will live for 100 years,” adding, “We can take as much time as needed to get it right.”

During a Thursday earnings call discussing the company’s fourth-quarter 2025 results, Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon said many Goldman employees are “extremely focused” on issues such as the CLARITY Act in Congress due to its potential impact on tokenization and stablecoins.

“Based on developments over the past 24 hours, this bill still has a long way to go before becoming law,” Solomon said, adding that he believes the reforms are important.

Serious issues require careful consideration

Previously, some banking lobby groups were reported to have pushed for legislation banning interest-bearing stablecoins, arguing that such products could drain deposits from traditional banks. However, intermediate proposals later emerged that would allow certain forms of compensation for the use of deposited assets.

In the latest draft of the bill, presented by the banking committee prior to the delay, lawmakers indicated they were considering banning passive income from stablecoin balances, while not fully ruling out rewards linked to the use of these digital assets.

At present, no new discussion of the bill by the banking committee has been scheduled. However, on January 27, the Senate Agriculture Committee is expected to review its own version of a digital asset market structure bill.

Some industry leaders expect weeks or even months to pass before the banking committee revisits the CLARITY Act, as Congress must also pass another government funding bill by the end of January to avoid another shutdown.

As we wrote, Crypto Week: U.S. House to consider key GENIUS and CLARITY bills

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