White House Reaches Ethics Deal on Crypto Market Structure Bill

The White House has agreed to ethics provisions in the CLARITY Act, a move that could help secure Democratic votes for the crypto market structure bill in the Senate.

Agreement Reached With Key Senators

According to a Punchbowl report published Tuesday, White House officials met with Republican Senators Cynthia Lummis and Bernie Moreno to finalize ethics language in the bill. Neither senator has publicly detailed the agreement, though reports suggest it could touch on President Trump’s own crypto investments. A White House official said the administration remains committed to advancing the CLARITY Act and has agreed to what it called the most comprehensive ethics provision in history, adding that it had worked to address Democratic concerns.

Bill Faces Ongoing Delays

The CLARITY Act passed the House in July 2025 as part of Republicans’ Crypto Week push but has since stalled in the Senate due to government shutdowns and disputes over ethics, tokenization, stablecoin rewards, and developer protections. As of Tuesday, no vote had been scheduled and the bill’s text remained unreleased, even as lawmakers hope for Senate action before the August recess.

Democrats Remain Cautious

Senators including Elizabeth Warren, Chris Murphy, Jeff Merkley and Chris Van Hollen have said any version of the bill would be meaningless without ethics safeguards addressing Trump’s ties to the crypto industry, including his memecoin and his family’s World Liberty Financial venture.

Bitcoin Reacts to the News

Bitcoin climbed above $66,000 Tuesday, touching a seven-week high as reports of the ethics agreement circulated alongside news of Trump’s planned new tariffs. The price movement was tied directly to growing optimism around the bill’s chances of passing, adding that market charts increasingly point toward approval.