Clarity Act clears Senate as Bitcoin hits $82K

The Clarity Act cleared the Senate Banking Committee 15 to 9 on Thursday, sending Bitcoin above $82,000 for the first time in weeks.

The Clarity Act advanced out of the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday in a 15 to 9 bipartisan vote, clearing a critical legislative gate for the most significant crypto market structure bill in US history. Bitcoin (BTC) climbed above $82,000 following the vote before retreating slightly to around $81,500, up approximately 2.5% on the day.

Two Democratic senators crossed the aisle to back the bill alongside all 13 Republicans on the committee. Chairman Tim Scott had described securing all 13 Republican votes as “the red zone,” with Senator John Kennedy having withheld support in the days leading up to the session.

Cody Carbone, who heads the Digital Chamber, told reporters the unresolved ethics provision around lawmakers trading crypto tokens remains the most likely obstacle before a floor vote. “I imagine the deal will be completed before this goes to the floor, because they’ll want to only bring it to the floor if they feel confident they’ve got 60,” Carbone said.

What the Clarity Act does

The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, which already passed the House 294 to 134 in July 2025, would draw a statutory line between the SEC and the CFTC. Digital commodities would fall under CFTC oversight and digital securities would remain under the SEC, ending years of regulatory uncertainty that has suppressed institutional flows into US crypto markets.

The bill still needs 60 votes on the Senate floor, reconciliation with the Senate Agriculture Committee version, and alignment with the House text before reaching the president’s desk. The full 309-page bill text is available at congress.gov. Senators Lummis and Moreno have both warned that missing the Memorial Day recess deadline on May 21 could push the next viable legislative window to 2030.

White House adviser Patrick Witt has indicated the administration will not accept ethics provisions targeting the president specifically, adding a further layer of negotiation before the floor vote can proceed. Democratic senators have linked their support to broader ethics language covering all lawmakers and officials.

Coinbase VP Kara Calvert said at Consensus 2026 that bipartisan backing is non-negotiable and the bill needs at least 60 votes to advance. For Bitcoin, now trading around $81,500, the committee vote functions primarily as a confidence signal.

The bill’s relevance to BTC is less about its own commodity classification and more about what a settled US digital asset framework does to institutional risk appetite across the broader market.