Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has renewed calls for the U.S. Senate to pass the CLARITY Act, arguing that the United States risks falling behind other major economies in establishing a clear regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies.
He noted that the vast majority of G20 economies have established rules for crypto trading, with the United Kingdom having finalized its framework only months earlier.
By contrast, the United States has yet to enact comprehensive market-structure legislation, leaving the industry operating under a patchwork of agency actions and legal uncertainty.
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In his words, he said,
“The vast majority of G20 countries already have a regulatory framework for crypto trading. The UK just got theirs a few months ago. The United States, the home of the world’s largest financial markets, is a major outlier here. It’s time to pass Clarity in the Senate on Sep 15th”
He argued that this lag puts American companies and investors at a disadvantage relative to jurisdictions that have already clarified the rules of the road.
His statement comes after prediction market Polymarket, put the bill’s odds of passage at just 20%. The figure marks a steep drop of roughly 45 percentage points from earlier levels, according to recent Polymarket data highlighted by Cointelegraph.
The steep decline signals growing uncertainty over the legislation’s prospects as lawmakers face mounting challenges in advancing a long-awaited regulatory framework for the cryptocurrency industry.
The CLARITY Act aims to define the respective roles of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in overseeing digital assets.
The House of Representatives passed the bill in 2025 with bipartisan support. In the Senate, a procedural cloture vote is scheduled for September 15. That vote requires 60 senators to allow formal debate to begin.
Armstrong has expressed confidence that the measure can secure more than 60 votes and has described discussions as having entered their final stage.
Supporters of the legislation say clear statutory rules would protect consumers, reduce regulatory ambiguity, and prevent future administrations from easily reversing agency guidance.
Critics and some lawmakers remain focused on the details of how authority would be divided between the SEC and CFTC, as well as broader questions of investor protection and market stability.
If the Senate does not advance the bill, officials at the CFTC have indicated they are prepared to move forward with rulemaking under existing authorities as early as the following day.
CFTC Chair Michael Selig has repeatedly signaled that regulators will not wait indefinitely. In earlier comments, he warned that without legislation, agencies would end up “writing all the rules” for digital assets.
A CFTC spokesperson stated that the agency stands ready to protect America’s leadership in financial markets and ensure it remains the crypto capital of the world, citing the costs of prolonged regulatory uncertainty under previous administrations.
Armstrong’s comments come amid broader efforts by the crypto industry to secure lasting regulatory certainty. He has previously suggested that clarity is likely to arrive one way or another either through congressional action or through new rules from the SEC and CFTC.
The September 15 vote represents the more durable path, he has argued, because legislation would set a statutory foundation that is harder to unwind.
As the date approaches, attention remains fixed on whether enough senators will support moving the bill forward. For Armstrong and many in the industry, the choice is between the United States continuing as a regulatory outlier or aligning more closely with the frameworks already adopted by most of its G20 peers.
Outlook
The outlook for the CLARITY Act remains closely tied to whether Senate lawmakers can secure the 60 votes needed to advance the legislation on September 15.
Armstrong’s confidence that the bill can clear the procedural hurdle suggests continued optimism within the crypto industry, but Polymarket’s sharply reduced odds highlight the political uncertainty surrounding its passage.
If the bill advances, it could mark a significant step toward establishing a clearer and more predictable regulatory framework for digital assets in the United States.