Overview
- The shutdown has entered its fourth week, surpassing the second-longest on record and extending uncertainty for digital-asset policy.
- Senate attention to funding has likely closed a narrow window to align with the House’s Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, and timelines are now discussed in terms of 2026.
- SEC work on digital-asset proposals, exchange-traded product approvals and IPOs is paused under essential-only staffing, with stablecoin policy work also on hold.
- Crypto executives met with senators from both parties to keep market-structure talks moving, as a leaked Democratic DeFi draft drew backlash and fueled tense exchanges.
- Prediction markets on Polymarket and Kalshi point to a mid-November reopening and suggest the shutdown could exceed the 35-day record.