Federal financial regulators under the Trump administration are moving to shape crypto policy through agency action rather than wait for Congress. Reports indicate the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission are each preparing to develop their own rules for digital asset markets.
The development comes as the CLARITY Act, a bill intended to establish comprehensive market-structure rules for cryptocurrencies, remains stalled in the Senate. The legislation had been viewed by many in the industry as the clearest path toward a unified federal framework covering how digital assets are classified, traded, and custodied.
Without that legislation moving forward, regulators appear to be stepping in to fill the gap. The SEC and CFTC have long shared, and at times disputed, jurisdiction over digital assets. The SEC generally oversees securities, while the CFTC regulates commodities and derivatives markets. Crypto assets have frequently fallen into a gray zone between the two.
The CLARITY Act was designed in part to resolve that jurisdictional ambiguity by defining which assets fall under which regulator. Its stall in the Senate leaves that question unresolved through legislation, at least for now. Agency-level rulemaking could offer a faster, though potentially less durable, alternative.
Rulemaking by the SEC and CFTC would not carry the same permanence as a statute passed by Congress. Agency rules can be more easily reversed by future administrations or challenged in court. Still, they could provide near-term guidance for exchanges, custodians, and issuers operating in the United States.
The push for agency-driven rules also reflects broader signals from the Trump administration favoring a more accommodating regulatory posture toward digital assets. Industry participants have pressed for clearer rules for years, arguing that uncertainty around classification and custody has slowed institutional adoption.
It remains unclear how quickly the SEC and CFTC could produce formal proposals, or how detailed those rules might be. Agency rulemaking typically involves public comment periods and can take months or longer before taking effect.
Sources disagree on this story
This article was published before the reports below were compared. The reporting above stands; what follows is where the published accounts do not agree.
Cryptopolitan and crypto.news give conflicting accounts of whether the SEC's exemption rule for token offerings had already been voted on and published, or was still forthcoming.
What all sources agree on
- The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act (CLARITY Act / H.R. 3633) has stalled in the Senate.
- The Senate adjourned for a five-week August recess without holding a floor vote on the bill.
- Senate Majority Leader John Thune filed a cloture motion, with a procedural vote expected in September.
- Polymarket odds for the bill's 2026 passage fell to roughly 16%.
- The SEC and CFTC, led by Paul Atkins and Michael Selig respectively, are moving to write their own crypto rules while Congress is stalled.
- SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce is set to leave the agency in November 2026.
Where the reports disagree
1Whether the SEC's token-offering exemption rule is still forthcoming or already proposed
the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is expected within weeks to propose a rule that would exempt some token offerings from securities requirements.
The SEC proposed Regulation Crypto Assets on Aug. 18, 2026, creating a $5 million startup exemption, a $75 million fundraising exemption, and an investment contract safe harbor that lets tokens exit securities status entirely.
What would settle it: The SEC's own rulemaking docket (Release No. 33-11434, docket S7-2026-27) and the Federal Register publication record.
2Whether the SEC's Aug. 14 meeting on the rule was canceled or resulted in a vote
On August 14, the SEC canceled a meeting where it was set to vote on proposing its first formal crypto-specific rulemaking, known as “Regulation Crypto.”
One week later, on Aug. 14, the Securities and Exchange Commission voted to publish Regulation Crypto Assets, a 400 page proposed rulemaking that would create the agency’s first bespoke offering regime for digital tokens. The full text landed on Aug. 18, the same week Polymarket odds for the CLARITY Act’s passage in 2026 dropped to roughly 16%.
What would settle it: The SEC's official meeting minutes or Sunshine Act notice for Aug. 14, 2026, and the Commission's vote record.
What to make of it
Treat the CLARITY Act's Senate stall and the agencies' broader move to write their own crypto rules as established; do not treat the exact status of the SEC's Aug. 14 meeting or the publication date of its exemption rule as settled until the SEC's own docket or meeting record is checked.
Market Impact
Any move toward agency-level crypto rules could offer near-term clarity for market participants who have waited years for defined custody and trading standards. Exchanges, custodians, and asset issuers may watch closely for signals on how the SEC and CFTC plan to divide oversight responsibilities.
However, rules written by regulators rather than passed by Congress carry less permanence. They can be revised or challenged more easily than statutory law, which may temper how much certainty markets ultimately gain from this approach. Investors and firms may continue to view the stalled CLARITY Act as the more durable long-term solution, even as agencies act in the interim.
The stalled CLARITY Act leaves crypto's core jurisdictional questions unresolved by Congress for now. Agency action from the SEC and CFTC may offer interim guidance, but a lasting legislative framework still appears some way off.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the CLARITY Act?
The CLARITY Act is proposed legislation aimed at establishing comprehensive market-structure rules for cryptocurrencies in the United States, including how digital assets are classified and regulated.
Why are the SEC and CFTC developing their own crypto rules?
Reports indicate the two agencies are moving to write rules independently because the CLARITY Act has stalled in the Senate, leaving key regulatory questions unresolved through legislation.
How do SEC and CFTC rules differ from a law like the CLARITY Act?
Agency rules can be issued more quickly but are generally less permanent than statutes, since they can be revised or challenged by future administrations or courts.
What happens to the CLARITY Act now?
The bill remains stalled in the Senate, and its future timeline is unclear based on current reporting.