Federal market regulators prepare for crypto policy shift under Clarity Act

Congress spent years arguing about who should regulate crypto. Then it actually did something about it, and now federal regulators are scrambling to keep up. The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act of 2025, introduced on May 29, 2025, by Rep. French Hill (R-AR), passed the House on July 17, 2025, with a bipartisan vote of 294-134. That comfortable margin sent a clear signal to the CFTC and SEC: the turf war is over, and it’s time to start building the rulebook. What the Clarity Act actually does At its core, the legislation creates a three-tier taxonomy for digital assets. Digital commodities, defined as fungible assets transferable on distributed ledgers, fall under exclusive CFTC jurisdiction. Investment contract assets stay with the SEC, which retains authority over primary sales. And permitted stablecoins get their own distinct category. The bill also mandates that digital commodity exchanges, brokers, and dealers register with the CFTC. Customer protection provisions are baked in, including requirements for asset segregation. That last part matters more than it sounds: segregation means customer funds can’t be commingled with a company’s own assets, a problem that proved catastro...