Overview
- Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said the latest Senate draft is "materially worse than the current status quo," citing effective bans on tokenized equities, broader DeFi surveillance, a shift of power from the CFTC to the SEC, and the end of stablecoin rewards.
- Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott put the bill’s markup on hold for a "brief pause," saying participants remain at the table as negotiations continue.
- The pullback in policy momentum coincided with steep declines in crypto-linked equities, with Coinbase and Robinhood sliding on Jan. 15 and sector losses topping $20 billion, according to market tallies.
- Industry reaction is split, with Kraken, Ripple, Circle and Andreessen Horowitz continuing to back a framework as Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev urges Congress to set rules that protect consumers and enable innovation.
- A Galaxy Research note pegs the odds of a durable bipartisan deal at about 25%, warning failure could delay comprehensive U.S. crypto rules until 2027.